In Right to Life Association of Toronto v. Canada , (Fed.Ct., Oct. 22, 2021), Canada's Federal Court in a 63-pagae opinion upheld a requirement in the 2018 Canada Summer Jobs program that required organizations applying for funding to attest that they respected individual human rights, Charter rights and reproductive rights. A right-to-life organization and individuals associated with it claimed that the attestation went beyond the Ministry's authority, was added at the behest of an abortion rights lobby, and infringes their freedom of religion and of speech. The court said in part:
[191] As found, the Attestation was a reasonable policy decision and within the Minister’s authority in accordance with the DESDA [Department of Employment and Social Development Act]. The decision to add the Attestation was not made with a closed mind, for improper purposes, or based on irrelevant considerations.
[192] The effect of the Attestation restricted or limited the Applicants’ rights to freedom of religion and protection against compelled speech, but only minimally and only in the context of the application for 2018 CSJ [Canadian Summer Jobs] funding. The limitation on the Applicants’ Charter rights reflects a proportionate balancing with the objectives of the DESDA and the CSJ program.
National Post reports on the decision.
