Because of pro-life Canadians, we have seen a growing debate about abortion. You\u2019ve used your voice to talk about pre-born human rights. Whether it\u2019s sending an email to your MP, putting a decal on your car, going to a March for Life, participating in SignsUp, or writing letters to the editor of your local paper, you\u2019ve used your voice to speak for those who cannot speak for themselves.<\/p>\n
Recent events are a testament to this growing discussion: the backlash to the Canada Summer Jobs<\/a> attestation, Prime Minister Trudeau\u2019s disallowing of pro-life views in the Liberal party, the Canadian funding of abortions overseas<\/a>, the movie Unplanned<\/em><\/a>, <\/em>and the tragedy that a pre-born child cannot be recognized as a victim of crime<\/a>. Canadians, including the media, politicians, and the general public, are talking about abortion. The debate is happening, and as voters this October we should expect MPs to represent us by engaging in this ongoing debate.<\/strong><\/p>\n We are seeing this impact already in the lead up to the October 2019 federal election, including last week when Conservative leader Andrew Scheer held a press conference to deal with questions about his socially conservative views, including his view on abortion.<\/p>\n During his run for leadership of the Conservative party, Scheer went on record saying that while a Conservative government would not bring forward abortion legislation, private member\u2019s bills could be introduced, and would be handled by a free vote. Since then, Scheer has not said much. In the press conference, he spoke again about recognizing MP\u2019s freedom of conscience, but said he will \u201coppose any measures or attempts to open this debate.\u201d<\/p>\n Scheer blames the Liberals for bringing up the abortion issue. But, it\u2019s not only the Liberals who are talking about it; there are a growing number of Canadians who are looking to their elected officials to do something about the lack of abortion legislation. In fact, the case could be made that Scheer is the leader of the Conservatives as a direct result of Canadians who want legislative action on pre-born human rights. Scheer only has himself to blame if he\u2019s wondering why abortion continues to be part of the election narrative.<\/p>\n Canadians are looking for a clear response. The question is, if an MP under a Conservative government puts forward a private member\u2019s bill on abortion, what will Scheer do? Will he recognize that the MP is representing their constituents\u2019 desire to see abortion debated in Parliament? We applaud his commitment to freedom of conscience and his party\u2019s policy reinforcing this. But what does it mean, then, that he will \u201coppose any measure or attempt to open this debate\u201d? Especially as the leader of a party, Scheer has a lot of influence even beyond government bills.<\/p>\n We have plenty of reasons to believe he will allow the debate, despite some of Scheer\u2019s vague statements. He does still give strong acknowledgement to the freedom of conscience of MPs. Another indication comes from pro-life MP Arnold Viersen\u2019s recent Facebook post:<\/p>\n <\/strong><\/p>\n