Federal Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre seems to have shifted from saying the school pronoun policy debate is a provincial matter — to saying he supports parental rights.

Poilievre told the Urdu Hindi Canadian outlet Awaz Entertainment that he favours parental rights over woke school boards this week. 

“My view is that parents should be the final authority of values and lessons that are taught to children. I believe in parental rights and [that] parental rights come before the government’s right,” he said.

The Conservative Party leader was also asked if he planned to attend the “Million Person March” scheduled for September 20, which is a protest against childhood indoctrination of gender ideology in schools. 

“I don’t know yet enough about it,” Poilievre said. He added, “I understand that its parents who are frustrated with government imposing contrary values on their children.”

Higgs was the first to restore common sense

New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs recently introduced a policy that requires teachers to have parental consent if they are to use alternative pronouns or names for students under the age of 16. Thus, if a child is taking on a transgender or non-binary identity at school, their parents will be made aware.

The policy prompted Trudeau to call the Higgs government “far-right.”

Since then, Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe enacted the same policy. Moreover, Manitoba Premier Heather Stefanson is campaigning on the issue, saying she’ll introduce parental rights legislation if re-elected.

Poilievre recently condemned Trudeau for wading into the issue, saying he needs to “butt out” and let provinces decide for themselves.

But this latest statement from Poilievre suggests he might realize it’s a political win for him. 

According to a recent poll by SecondStreet.org and market research firm Leger, 57% of Canadians agree with Higgs’ stance on parental rights.