OTTAWA – With the leaders of the main political parties in Canada typically taking a pro-abortion stance in public, pro-life Canadians could at least in the past find a home in the Conservative Party of Canada, where the party leadership appeared to be more open to pro-life voices having a role within the party.

But in the early days of the 2021 federal election campaign, federal Conservative Leader Erin O’Toole has angered pro-life activists by not only continually stating that any government he leads would be a “pro-choice” government, but appearing to backtrack on a pledge he made while running for the party leadership a year ago when he pledged to respect the conscience rights of health care workers .

The issue of conscience protection when it comes to procedures such as abortion and assisted suicide has come up repeatedly during the election campaign.

On Aug. 20 O’Toole said conscience rights should be respected but that health-care workers must refer patients to other professionals who would perform the procedures.

Pro-life activists and Church teaching oppose forcing health-care professionals to act against their conscience and advocate for conscience rights for health workers.

The Coalition for HealthCare and Conscience in presentations to Parliament has repeatedly advocated for protection of conscience rights, most recently during the debate over the expansion of Canada’s assisted suicide law.

“Members of our Coalition should not be forced to perform actions that go against their conscience, or to refer the action to others, since that is the moral equivalent of participating in the act itself,” the Coalition said.

“It is simply not right or just to say: you do not have to do what is against your conscience, but you must make sure it happens. We do not believe that there is a necessary conflict between conscience rights and patient decision making.”

O’Toole told the media Aug. 20 there has to be a balance between conscience rights and the rights of Canadians to access health care services.

“Let me repeat again, I’m pro-choice and we will make sure that women have the ability to make decisions with respect to their health care for themselves and make sure abortion services are available from one ocean to the other," he said.

“They will have to refer, because the rights to access those services exist across the country,” O’Toole said. “We have to respect conscience rights but allow there to be referrals.”

Campaign Life Coalition national president Jeff Gunnarson told Canadian Catholic News O’Toole’s position makes the Conservative Party no different than the Liberals or NDP. 

“It is disappointing that he would take that position, but it is not surprising,” he said, adding the party leaders may not want abortion and pro-life issues discussed, but Canadians do. “Canadians want real discussions about these issues – about abortion, euthanasia, and pro-life principles.

He called on pro-life Canadians to seek public office and to vote pro-life.

“The only way to change this is to keep electing pro-life MPs, to keep raising these issues, and to change minds by being vocal about the pro-life cause and engage with Canadians on these issues.”