Your voice matters. Your vote matters.

Provincial election day is Feb. 27, 2025. Advance voting is Feb. 20 - 22. 
On Feb. 6, pflag Arnprior and pflag Renfrew County sent a joint email to the four major party candidates in Renfrew-Nipissing-Pembroke, asking them to respond to five questions of critical importance to our pflag community. We encourage you to read their replies below, and to raise these questions with candidates who didn't respond. Most importantly, be sure to VOTE.  For more information about voting, visit Elections Ontario.  

Pflag Questions + Candidate Responses

1. Gender-affirming healthcare is recognized as life-saving, yet access remains inconsistent across Ontario. Many individuals face months-to-years-long waitlists, particularly in rural areas. What specific steps will you and your party take to expand and protect access to gender-affirming care for trans and non-binary youth and adults?
NDP (Marshall Buchanan)
​I, alongside Marit Stiles and the Ontario NDP will commit to immediately begin work to improve access to gender-affirming procedures and surgeries and make transition drugs free. We’ll work to ensure full coverage of transition drugs and medications. We’ll pass the Gender Affirming Health Care Advisory Committee Act, working with advocates and health care providers to reduce barriers to care for transition-related and gender-confirming surgeries. We’ll ensure health care decisions are in line with standards of care established by the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH). We’ll increase shelter spaces and fund wraparound services for queer trans and gender diverse youth in need​.
LIBERAL  (Oliver Jacob)
 As I shared at the Cobden All Candidates Meeting in response to a similar question, I will always support providing gender-affirming care for trans and non-binary folks in our communities. As Canadians, I believe that we should always be inclusive for all members of our community because that is our way of life. For me, gender-affirming care is basic health care and it should be available regardless of where someone lives or how they identify. While this type of care will not be accessed by the majority of patients, we must always ensure that it is available for those who need it across the province. We must ensure that all community members have access to a family physician that is trained appropriately to protect the physical and emotional wellbeing of their patients at each visit. Each health care professional should be provided with training and resources to be able to ensure a safe environment for their patients to share about their medical concerns. We must also bolster inclusive policies within school boards and ensure that our education system has mutual respect for all human beings at the basis of their work.
2. Comprehensive, evidence-based sex education is critical for fostering safe and inclusive schools, yet Ontario’s curriculum has been repeatedly altered in ways that remove or weaken discussions on gender identity, sexual orientation, and consent. Research consistently shows that inclusive, age-appropriate education on these topics helps reduce bullying, improves mental health outcomes, and supports the well-being of 2SLGBTQI+ youth. Where do you and your party stand on restoring and protecting evidence-based, inclusive sex education in Ontario schools? Will you commit to ensuring that all students receive accurate, affirming information about gender identity, sexual orientation, and consent?
NDP 
The Ontario NDP have always believed in a full spectrum education curriculum - vowing to fully restore the 2017 curriculum that was abolished under Doug Ford and his Conservative MPPs. We understand and acknowledge that sex education is crucial for our youth’s development.​​​
LIBERAL 
I am proud to share that both myself and Ontario Liberals support modern curricula that are evidence-based and reflective of the constantly changing society that we face. When I was in elementary school, my studies were based on an outdated 1998 health and physical education curriculum that did not even touch on the concept of consent nor online media literacy. I believe that it is integral that our curriculum be updated to reflect the issues that our students will be facing. Curriculum development should be led by non-partisan experts within the Ministry of Education with consultation to community groups and stakeholders that have lived experience with the subject matters under evaluation (like pflag). However,
from my perspective, the foundation is a fulsome understanding of consent, its manifestations and the legal imperatives behind it. In addition, our curriculum should be teaching our students about the different relationship models that exist and that regardless of how a family may look, they are always valid and integral parts of our community. The sexual education component of the health and physical education curriculum should be introduced in an age-appropriate manner as had been proposed in 2017/2018 but the document must be modernized to reflect the 2025 environment.
3. Trans and non-binary students deserve autonomy over their identities. Additionally, not all trans youth have safe and supportive home environments. Will you and your party support students’ right to change their name and pronouns in schools without unnecessary and potentially harmful parental or administrative barriers?
NDP 
Yes, absolutely. Our Ontario NDP team is fully committed to ensuring that all students have the right to change their name and pronouns in schools without unnecessary or harmful barriers. Every young person deserves to feel safe, respected, and seen for who they truly are.
We recognize that for many trans and non-binary youth, school is one of the few places where they can fully express their identity. Unfortunately, not all students have supportive or safe environments at home. 
Schools should be safe, affirming spaces where all students can thrive, regardless of gender identity. The Ontario NDP will continue to stand with 2SLGBTQIA+ youth, educators, and mental health professionals to uphold policies that respect students’ rights to self-identify. We will oppose any legislation or policy that forces disclosure or puts young people at risk. Our schools must be places of belonging and safety for everyone.
LIBERAL 
Yes. Students should be able to adopt a preferred name and pronouns that reflect their gender identity within our public education system. This is important to make sure that they can have a safe classroom environment to learn, even if their home life may not be as accepting. It builds trust with their teachers and creates the conditions that would allow students to identify a trusted adult in their lives (if that person cannot be at home). Not only does this do wonders for the mental health of the student but it also opens the door for them to open up to education staff where they might be abuse or mistreatment at home.​​
4. The Charter of Rights and Freedoms protects all Canadians, including 2SLGBTQI+ individuals. And yet, the Government of Saskatchewan has used the notwithstanding clause to override the Charter rights of 2SLGBTQI youth and the Government of Alberta has threatened to do the same. Will you and your party commit to upholding the rights and protections of all Canadians and oppose the use of the notwithstanding clause to discriminate against members of the 2SLGBTQI+ community?
NDP 
​​The use of the notwithstanding clause is something Marit Stiles and the Ontario NDP has been against its use in all cases. Doug Ford and his Conservatives have no problem trampling on constituent rights and freedoms - and the Ontario NDP thinks that is wrong. 
LIBERAL 
Yes. I oppose the use of the notwithstanding clause of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms in general but also specifically for proposals to by-pass the rights of Ontarians to be free from discrimination. As Canadians, we are proud of our nation and its Charter but as a society, we must commit to always respect the fundamental rights of all Canadians, particular the right to equality before the law and in our government institutions.​
5. Rural 2SLGBTQI+ individuals face unique challenges, including social isolation, limited access to affirming healthcare, and a lack of community resources. What specific policies will you advocate for to improve services and supports for 2SLGBTQI+ people in rural and remote areas like Renfrew–Nipissing–Pembroke?
NDP 
I will advocate for fair and equal opportunities through the following policies that the Ontario NDP has been advocating for: 
  • Support 2SLGBTQIA+-owned businesses through our diverse vendor strategy and introduce a grant program to support 2SLGBTQIA+ community organizations to expand their programming and services.
  • Make long-term care 2SLGBTQIA+ affirming so people can always live with Pride: Moving into long-term care should never mean having to move back into the closet
  • Launch a 2SLGBTQIA+ Inclusion Action Plan, so that government services like health care, education, and long-term care are inclusive of and welcoming to 2SLGBTQIA+ Ontarians. We will consult broadly with members of these communities, following the “nothing about us, without us” approach.
  • Make PrEP free: We’ll work to ensure necessary medications are accessible to everyone who needs them, including full coverage of the cost of all transition drugs and medications and improved access to other essential medicines, including those required to treat and prevent HIV, including preexposure prophylaxis (PrEP).​
LIBERAL 
Rural life presents significant challenges and opportunities for 2SLGBTQI+ people. Our communities have historically been close-knit where neighbours support neighbours and while we have gotten away from that, our 2SLGBTQI+ community has continued this tradition within its membership. Our provincial government should be working hand-in-hand with community groups like pflag Renfrew County and pflag Arnprior as we work to develop provincial policies across the board, especially in the health care, education, justice and community services sectors. Facilitated by the MPP and Ministry staff (where possible), regional roundtables with community groups and people with lived experience would allow the Government of Ontario to gain important insights into how policies would be best implemented at the local level before such implementation is undertaken. This would help to eliminate unintended issues that may not have been foreseen by provincial leaders. In addition, at a basic level, our frontline public servants should have the cultural competency and inclusive spaces trainings that they need to provide effective customer service to clients of all backgrounds. If elected, I would commit that myself and my office staff would undertaken these training sessions and refresh our knowledge regularly and at the recommendation of local communities. Being an MPP is all about listening to your constituents, hearing their concerns and suggestions and bringing them back to Queen’s Park to fight for action. That’s exactly what I am ready and prepared to do for everyone in Renfrew County, especially those from marginalized communities.
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If anyone has follow-up questions, they can always reach out to me by phone at (613) 227-5756 or by email at [email protected]. ​