Premier 'disappointed' with mother's comments on LGBTQ review but doesn't contradict them
Higgs says Nicole Paquet’s account of her meeting with education minister was ‘political’
New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs says he's disappointed with a Saint John mother's comments about her dealings with Education Minister Bill Hogan on a review of a school policy on LGBTQ students.
Nicole Paquet told CBC News last week that Hogan asked her for help reworking a section on whether parents should be told about their children expressing their sexual orientation or gender identity at school.
Paquet said Hogan wanted to make it mandatory for teachers to tell parents, but she wanted the policy to stay the same.
Policy 713 says a child must consent before a teacher can tell their parents about their choice of names and pronouns in the classroom.
She said she was "gobsmacked" Hogan wanted her to help change a policy she felt should remain as is.
"I certainly was disappointed," Higgs said Wednesday when asked about Paquet's account, though he did not directly contradict her account.
Paquet gave a presentation to the Progressive Conservative caucus last week "and then offered to help map out a path forward," the premier said.
He repeated that the review covers three sections of Policy 713 and "we're not repealing the policy" as a whole but looking for clarifications to avoid "inconsistencies" in how it is applied.
Paquet told CBC News that her presentation to PC MLAs included an account of a teacher — contrary to the policy — contacting her to tell her that her son, a middle school student, was using a different name as he explored his gender identity.
She said her son's trust in teachers was broken, and he was robbed of the opportunity to communicate the information at his own pace.
Higgs responded to Paquet's account during a news conference on Charlotte County forest fires, despite having said last week he would not comment on the Policy 713 review again until it was finished.
"I think it was a disappointing comment and more of a political one, it seems," he said of Paquet's account.
Besides the parent notification change for children under 16, the other elements under review allow a student to play on sports teams and use washrooms that align with their gender identity.
The premier wouldn't say if there's been a decision on parent notification, explaining that he had not seen "the final outcome" because Hogan was holding consultations.
"He will present that to our team here over the coming days or weeks — probably not weeks — then we'll kind of know where it lands. Right now it's still very much in the minister's hands to complete his evaluation."
Five cabinet ministers and two backbench Tory MLAs have expressed concerns about the policy review.
Transportation and Infrastructure Minister Jeff Carr made the most pointed comments, saying governments should be there "to strengthen policies and not take away the rights of marginalized individuals."
Higgs did not respond directly Wednesday when asked what role the PC caucus will have in approving any changes.
"I think you've heard it from many of my colleagues, and I would echo those. They have the utmost confidence in the minister of education. He certainly does not consider children to be wards of the state.
"He believes that parents play a role in a child's upbringing, and we have confidence that he will present something to us at the end of the day that will work for everyone."
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