School Change-Room Policy No Longer First Priority for Gov’t, Says Sask. Premier Moe
Newly re-elected Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe has backed away from comments he made on the campaign trail, saying the creation of a policy requiring students to use change rooms corresponding to their biological sex is no longer the "first order of business" for his party.
Moe originally said his Minister of Education would provide a directive to schools that said biological boys could not be in the change room with biological girls.
At the time, Moe was in the middle of his re-election campaign. When speaking to reporters on Nov. 7, however, he said it was no longer at the top of the government's priority list.
"I had indicated that it was going to be the first order of business. I misspoke. It's not," he said, in response to a reporter's question.
Moe said he should have said his first priority was to meet with the lieutenant-governor and form a cabinet, which he has done. The next order of business, Moe said, was to put together a legislative agenda and throne speech.
He said he has a "decisive personality" and sometimes speaks before thinking, saying that this was "one of those times." Moe also said that when he made the change room comment, he had just learned of a complaint about two biological boys using a girls locker room at a school in the province.
The premier told reporters there will be discussion on the issue after the provincial school board elections, scheduled for Nov. 13.
"Upon the completion of the school board elections I would be asking the Minister of Education to to consult with the 27 school division chairs, whomever they might be after their election, and to work towards ensuring that we do have a policy in this space," he said during the news conference.
"This will be an ongoing conversation that happens with the Minister of Education and probably likely the school division chairs that come out of the election here in about a week or so."
Moe said that any policy developed would need to be "supportive of each and every child, in every classroom, in every school, in every community across the province."
LGBT support group UR Pride filed a legal challenge against the policy. Moe then converted the policy into legislation under the Parents Bill of Rights, using the notwithstanding clause.
The legislation was passed in October 2023. It requires schools to seek parental consent for students younger than 16 who want to change their name or pronouns.
UR Pride described the policy as discriminatory, saying it violates the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and puts gender-diverse students at risk.
Alberta has also introduced a pronoun policy, similar to Saskatchewan, but has gone further and is introducing legislation that would ban sex re-assignment surgery on minors and prevent the use of puberty blockers and hormone therapies for those aged 15 and younger.
Premier Danielle Smith said her party is also looking to update the Education Act to require schools to seek parental consent for students younger than 16 who want to change their name or pronouns. Students 16 and older do not need parental permission, but the school will need to inform the parents.
New Brunswick was the first province to introduce a pronoun policy for schools, with then-Premier Blaine Higgs changing Policy 713 to require parental consent for students 15 and younger who want to use pronouns different than their biological sex.
