Premier Scott Moe spoke to reporters on Wednesday about the rallies both for and against the government’s new pronoun policy in schools and about the Prime Minister alleging the Indian government may have been involved in the death of a prominent Canadian Sikh leader.

There were rallies across Canada on Wednesday both for and against children being able to decide what pronouns they want to use in school and what names they want to be called. These demonstrations were spurred by school policies recently put in place in Saskatchewan and New Brunswick that require parental consent before teachers can use their preferred first names and pronouns.

Premier Scott Moe says he is aware of the rallies, including the ones in Regina and Saskatoon. He believes there is broad support for the policy in Saskatchewan, and suggests to all parents to reach out to teachers, principals, school boards and school divisions to let their thoughts be known, and if they are willing, to become more involved in their children’s schools. He notes that most schools have a community council, which is designed to engage parents in their children’s education.

UR Pride, from the University of Regina, went to court to apply for an injunction on Tuesday, and if accepted, it would mean suspending the policy while it is being constitutionally debated. Premier Moe has said that the government will use the “notwithstanding clause” if necessary. The clause allows a government to temporarily enact a law even if it violates certain human rights.

When it comes to Canada’s relationship with India, the Premier believes that for the Prime Minister to have stated in the House of Commons that Canadian intelligence agencies were investigating credible allegations that agents of the Indian government were involved in the death prominent Canadian Sikh leader, Hardeep Singh Nijjar, there must be some significant intelligence behind that. Moe says he has never head of a Prime Minister singling out a nation as part of an unthinkable crime before. He has faith that law enforcement agencies will get to the bottom of this.

He separates this tension between the two countries though from the trade relationship Saskatchewan has with India saying 30 to 40 per cent of Canadian exports to that country come from Saskatchewan. The province has trade offices in India, but Moe doesn’t believe they will be part of any future sanctions. Moe suggests that at times like this when the relationship is stressed, it is important for the province to have those offices in India to represent the best interests of Saskatchewan and to have a continued trade relationship through times of unrest.