OTTAWA — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says his government will act to ensure Canadians have access to abortion no matter where they live in the country, and also ensure that no future government can take that right away.
What that action will look like was under scrutiny Wednesday in the wake of a leaked draft of a US Supreme Court decision that appears set to roll back abortion rights in that country later this year.
Cabinet ministers on their way into their weekly caucus meeting said news out of the US means it is time to consider how to implement specific promises to protect reproductive rights the Liberals made during the 2021 election campaign.
“This is something we are going to move forward with and I think the leak on Monday night just emphasizes why this is so important,” said Families Minister Karina Gould.
The promises included regulations under the Canada Health Act so “there is no question that no matter where someone lives, that they have access to publicly available sexual and reproductive health services.”
If provinces failed to meet that standard, they would lose money from their federal health transfer payments.
Trudeau said the government has already allocated $45 million to organizations that fight for and support women’s rights.
He said he’s also tasked the ministers of health and women and gender equality to “to look at the legal framework that exists around reproductive health and services like abortion to ensure that we move forward as necessary on ensuring that not just under this government, but under any future government, the rights of women are properly protected.”
The Liberals also promised during the election campaign to revoke the charitable status of anti-abortion organizations, including those known as “crisis pregnancy centers,” which they say provide dishonest counseling to women about their options during pregnancy.
A promise to increase support to those centers is among the pledges Leslyn Lewis is making as part of her campaign to become the next Conservative leader.
That dozens of Conservative MPs are opposed to abortion rights means Canada must be vigilant in protecting them, Gould said.
Conservative MPs were told not to comment on the potential overturn of the decision in Roe v. Wade, as the US case has no direct bearing on Canadian jurisdiction.
But one Conservative senator said Wednesday that in his view, the matter is settled in Canada and should be left alone.
“For myself, it is something behind us. I know there are some MPs who want to revive that subject, but for us, it’s dead,” said Sen. Pierre Hughes Boisvenu.
“We hope the new leader will put a nail in that subject.”
Boisvenu is among those backing Jean Charest’s bid for leadership of the party. Charest said Tuesday he is pro-choice and his government would not introduce or support any legislation restricting reproductive rights.
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