Conservative grassroots to debate DEI, conversion therapy, abortion and immigration at convention

OTTAWA — Conservative grassroots will debate amending the party’s policy towards diversity, as well as deleting a clause that says a future government would not support legislation restricting abortion, when they meet in Calgary later this month. 

Delegates from across the country will gather at the party’s first convention since the 2025 spring election loss to vote on Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre’s future as party leader, as well as changes to the party’s policy and constitution.

Late Thursday, the Conservative party published a list of policy proposals submitted by party members across riding associations.

Many of them align with Poilievre’s message about advancing a tough-on-crime agenda, opposition to drug decriminalization, faster pipeline development and cracking down on immigration, such as supporting an end to the temporary foreign workers program and speedier deportations for non-citizens convicted of a serious crime.

As party leader, Poilievre can choose whether or not to advance resolutions that members endorse, as has been the case for past leaders.

Party conventions have historically been where party members can push a leader to take a stronger stance on an issue and serve as an indicator of the direction grassroots members want a party to take.

On crime, one resolution echoes a call Poilievre has already made to amend the Criminal Code to say that the use of lethal force is presumed to be reasonable for Canadians defending their home against a person breaking into it.

Others, however, touch on social issues the leader has distanced himself from as he tries to prosecute Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government on the cost of living.

One such submission proposes to delete from the party’s current policy declaration a clause that states, “a Conservative government will not support any legislation to regulate abortion.”

Social conservatives comprise a well-organized bloc within the party, but Poilievre himself has vowed not to touch the abortion issue should his party form government. His wife, Anaida Poilievre, has previously said in a French-language interview that the couple is “pro-choice.”

Poilievre, who has been at the helm of the party since September 2022, has largely stuck to an economic agenda, squarely focused on affordability issues and concerns about crime.

Another proposal being brought forward involves the party amending a policy on family to support the “parental right to body-affirming therapy for kids,” who, as the submission states, may be “gender-confused.”

“We believe that parents have the right to arrange for body-affirming talk therapy for their gender-confused child, and we oppose the federal ‘conversion therapy ban’ which criminalizes parents for doing so,” reads the resolution submitted by Conservative members in the Ontario riding of Kitchener Centre.

Conversion therapy refers to the practice of attempting to change a child’s sexual orientation or gender identity, which has widely been discredited as harmful.

A majority of the Conservative caucus under former party leader Erin O’Toole voted against banning it in 2021, when the legislation was being debated in the House of Commons, arguing that its wording was overly broad. Poilievre, however, voted in support.

At that time, some social conservative MPs spoke out about the decision to ultimately help the Liberals fast-track the bill through the House of Commons.

Opposition to policies that allow for the medical transition of gender-diverse and transgender children has gained traction as an issue in recent years, with premiers like Alberta Premier Danielle Smith’s government passing a law banning such procedures for minors. Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe did likewise when it comes to a child wishing to be referred to by a different pronoun requiring parental consent.

When it comes to the federal Conservatives, Poilievre has himself stated that he opposes gender-diverse minors having access to puberty blockers. During the party’s 2023 convention in Quebec City, party members voted overwhelmingly for a proposal stating that a future Conservative government should prohibit surgical and other medical interventions for gender-diverse youth.

Other policy resolutions being presented include stating the party’s opposition to digital IDs and what one submission calls “protection from political de-banking,” which comes years after former prime minister Justin Trudeau approved emergency powers to freeze the bank accounts of those involved in the 2022 “Freedom Convoy,” in an effort to quell the protest.

Members also submitted resolutions that touch on diversity, equity and inclusion issues, which have become a more popular issue, particularly within conservative and right-wing circles, taking aim at judicial appointments and the party’s own policy on diversity.

One resolution from the Eglinton Lawrence riding association proposes adding to its policy that the “Conservative Party believes in the principle of meritocracy, defined as a system where individuals succeed based on their abilities, efforts, and achievements—not their background or social status.”

When it comes to the CBC, the promised “defunding” of which has been among Poilievre’s most popular promises, one resolution calls for party policy to state that it “believes the control and operations of the CBC/SRC as an entity should be accomplished through independent, non-governmental funding.”

Many of the proposed changes to the party’s constitution revolve around the nomination process, which the Conservative Party has already sought to address after widespread concerns following last year’s election about last-minute appointments and a lack of nomination contests.

National Post

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