Ford Says Ontario Won’t Change Gender Identity Policies, Including in Schools, as Alberta Did

Ontario Premier Doug Ford delivers remarks at Lakeshore Collegiate Institute in Toronto on Aug. 31, 2023. The Canadian Press/Spencer Colby

Ontario Premier Doug Ford says the province won’t be making gender identity policy changes similar to those recently announced in Alberta.

While his government had already said it wouldn’t follow Alberta’s restrictions on medical transitioning for minors, his office confirmed he is also ruling out Alberta’s other measures, such as requiring schools to inform parents about pronoun and name changes at school.

When The Epoch Times asked specifically about potential reforms to school policy, a spokesperson initially responded by highlighting comments by Health Minister Sylvia Jones and Mr. Ford about medical transitioning.

However, when asked to confirm if the province is ruling out school policy changes as well, the spokesperson said, “We will not be replicating the changes the Alberta government unveiled last week.”

Mr. Ford met with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith on Feb. 7, and Global News asked his office if he would be considering policy changes such as those Ms. Smith announced on Jan. 31.

“The premier was clear that our focus remains on delivering on the commitments we made during the campaign, which doesn’t include replicating the changes the Alberta government unveiled last week,” a spokesperson for Mr. Ford said.

Following comments last year by Mr. Ford and and Education Minister Stephen Lecce that parents should be informed if their children are transitioning genders at school, parental rights advocates have been pushing for the Ontario government to legislate as New Brunswick, Saskatchewan, and now Alberta, have done.

Ms. Smith said on Jan. 31 that her government would be introducing legislation that would require parental consent for children 15 years of age and under to change their pronouns or names at school.

Students aged 16 or 17 don’t need parental consent, but parents must be informed of their child’s decision.

Alberta’s new legislation also includes restrictions on gender transition medical procedures for children, among other measures surrounding gender identity.

Comments on Parental Rights

Mr. Ford has previously said that parents should be kept informed about what is going on with their children at school.

“Most important is the parents’ rights. The parents’ rights to listen and make sure they are informed when their children make a decision,” Mr. Ford said on Sept. 8, 2023, in Kitchener, Ont.

“It’s not up to the teachers, it’s not up to the school board, to indoctrinate our kids. It’s the parents’ responsibility to hear what the kids are doing.”

Mr. Lecce has also publicly said that parents should be “fully involved” in children’s decisions, including gender transition.

“Parents must be fully involved and fully aware of what’s happening in the life of their children. I mean, often there are health implications,” he said during a press conference on Aug. 28, 2023.

However, Mr. Lecce did not say the government would be bringing in legislation on the issue.

“We’re simply making clear as a province that we believe parents should be fully involved, fully aware of what’s happening to their children,“ he said. ”These are significant changes, and they have a right to know.”

Mr. Lecce’s office has not responded to multiple inquiries from The Epoch Times.

Curriculum Revisions

In 2019, Mr. Ford’s government revised the sexual education curriculum in schools, allowing parents to opt their children out of certain lessons. However, critics said the changes did not go far enough to quell the concerns parents have about content in the classroom.

“I think the parents who have been opposed to the curriculum up to now are going to continue to be opposed,” Lou Iacobelli, a former high school teacher and founder of the Parental Rights in Education Defense Fund said at the time.

“In fact, they’re disappointed, they feel betrayed because even when we were going through the election, I think a number of people supported Doug Ford because … one of the promises he made was that he was going to repeal the curriculum, withdraw it. It wasn’t just a question of making some minor changes.”

The revision sees students learning about sexual orientation in Grade 5 rather than Grade 6, and gender identity is taught in Grade 8, not Grade 6.

“Premier Ford committed to repealing the 2015 sex-ed, but the curriculum that has been outlined so far looks more like a reshuffle than a repeal,” said Teresa Pierre, senior researcher with Parents as First Educators.

The Canadian Press, Joan Delaney, and Matthew Horwood contributed to this report.