NB Premier Bans Group From Schools After ‘Inappropriate’ Sex-Ed Presentation

New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs speaks to media outside the Government House in Fredericton following a cabinet shuffle on June 27, 2023. (Stephen MacGillivray/The Canadian Press)

New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs says he is upset over “inappropriate” content shared with students at New Brunswick high schools, and the group behind the presentation will no longer be allowed in schools.

“A number of concerned parents have shared with me photos and screenshots of clearly inappropriate material that was presented recently in at least four New Brunswick high schools,” he said in a May 24 post on X, formerly Twitter.

“To say I am furious would be a gross understatement,” he said.

“This presentation was not part of the New Brunswick curriculum and the content was not flagged for parents in advance,” he added. “My office has been told by Department of Education officials that this was supposed to be a presentation on HPV. “

The premier said the material went “well beyond the scope” of an HPV presentation.

A photo attached to the post noted several questions that were displayed on a board by the group, including “Is it normal to watch porn like people watch TV series?” and other comments about sexual acts.

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“This group will not be allowed to present again at New Brunswick schools, effective immediately,” he said in the post.

“Our government will have further discussions about whether additional rules about third-party presentations need to be updated.”

Mr. Higgs said that he will stand with parents, and that they need to be informed about what is happening at schools.

“I want parents to know that we are with you. We will continue to make decisions based on the principle that parents need to be aware of what is happening at schools, so they can make informed parenting decisions,” he wrote.

He also invited parents to participate in a survey about third-party presentations.

Mr. Higgs’s government has introduced legislation to require schools to seek parental consent if a student wants to change their pronouns or name.

SK Bans Planned Parenthood From Schools

In June 2023, Saskatchewan’s then-education minister, Dustin Duncan, suspended Planned Parenthood from presenting in schools after “inappropriate” sexual content was taken into a high school in Lumsden, north of Regina.

The material included graphic, sexual words beginning with each letter of the alphabet. Planned Parenthood said the material was not part of the presentation, but was available at a side table.

“It’s just completely inappropriate to be in the classroom, and so that’s the basis for today’s directive,” Mr. Duncan said at the time.

The executive director at Regina’s Planned Parenthood said they were disappointed with the decision.

Julian Wotherspoon said the organization discusses contraceptives, sexually transmitted infections, and sexual consent while teachers are in the classrooms.

“We believe that people of all ages have a right to that information about their sexual health,” she said.

Matthew Horwood and The Canadian Press contributed to this report.