Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre says Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the media are spreading “disinformation” about Alberta’s
new policies on child medical transition.
At a Feb. 6
press conference in Montreal, a reporter said that when Mr. Poilievre was asked the day before about the new policies—which the reporter characterized as restricting “health care for transgender youth”—the Conservative leader refused “to say where you actually stand on those regulations.”
“Can you say now where do you stand on the state restricting health-care access for transgender youth? And can you confirm whether or not your caucus is allowed to speak freely on this issue?” the reporter asked.
Mr. Poilievre responded by saying that the reporter is spreading “disinformation,” and that his question didn’t “describe the policy proposals that are being debated.”
“You refused to even list any of them,” the Tory leader said, suggesting that what’s behind this attempt to “keep it vague” is that this way, “you think that you can misrepresent them” as well as “misrepresent Conservatives.”
Mr. Poilievre added that “this is exactly what Justin Trudeau has done.”
“You notice that Trudeau has not given a single example of any of the policies that Premier [Danielle] Smith has brought forward that he individually disagrees with, because he doesn’t want to be specific about it,” he said.
“And that’s because he and you want to peddle in disinformation in order to demonize Premier Smith and parents.”
Under the Alberta government’s
policies announced on Jan. 31, gender reassignment surgeries will not be permitted for those aged 17 and under, and those 15 and under will not be permitted to take puberty blockers or hormone therapies as part of gender reassignment treatment. In addition, transgender individuals will not be allowed to participate in female-only sports leagues.
The new policies will also require schools to obtain parental approval for students aged 15 and under who want to be referred to by different pronouns. Schools must also inform parents about such requests from 16- and 17-year-olds, but those students will not need parental consent for their requests.
Parents and Provinces
The Tory leader also accused Mr. Trudeau of spreading “hatred” against Muslim and Christian parents by criticizing them for “standing up for their kids.” Mr. Poilievre said the prime minister needs to trust parents to raise their children and “let provinces run schools and hospitals.”Following Ms. Smith’s policy announcement, the
prime minister said the Alberta premier should stand with the Liberals to fight for Canadians on lower grocery prices, affordable fuel, more housing, and climate change and should not “fight against vulnerable LGBT youth.”
Edmonton MP and federal
Employment Minister Randy Boissonnault said the proposed policy requiring transgender-identifying children 15 and under to get parental consent if they want to change pronouns at school meant Ms. Smith was “mandating that schools force kids out of the closet before many of them are ready.”
In July 2023, amid protests across Canada from Muslim and Christian parents upset with gender ideology being taught in schools,
Mr. Trudeau suggested that many parents were falling prey to “misinformation and disinformation on social media, particularly being fuelled by the American right wing.”
During the
“1 Million March for Children” protests across Canada last September against the teaching of gender ideology, Mr. Trudeau wrote in a
post on X, “We strongly condemn this hate and its manifestations, and we stand united in support of 2SLGBTQI+ Canadians across the country.”
Mr. Poilievre has generally stayed away from commenting on the issue of gender ideology being taught in schools, instead focusing on economic proposals. On Feb. 5, the Tory leader said his party stood for “common sense” when asked for his position on Ms. Smith’s proposals, adding that the prime minister was “distracting and dividing Canadians” rather than focusing on issues like housing, crime, and taxes.
Noé Chartier contributed to this report.
