One day after the City of Regina passed a bylaw prohibiting conversion therapy, the group “Queen City for All” and the Saskatchewan NDP say it is time for legislation from the provincial government to condemn the practice and ban it  province-wide.

“We’re very proud of the fact that both Saskatoon and now Regina city councils have shown clear leadership on this issue to ban this practice within their city limits,” said Human Rights Critic Meara Conway. “However, this step was only necessary due to the lack of leadership at the provincial level from Premier Moe and this government. Regardless of the municipality, all LGBTQ+ people in this province deserve those protections.”

“The Premier and the Sask Party government should be part of the solution,” said Queen City for All spokesperson Kent Peterson. “All but one Saskatchewan MP refused to ban this at the federal level. The Premier and every Sask. Party MLA needs to condemn and outright ban conversion therapy to show queer folks in Saskatchewan that this horrific practice is not accepted in any corner of the province.”

Responding to the NDP, the government sent out a statement saying they are opposed to any form of therapy that claims to be able to change sexual orientation, and does not provide coverage for these unacceptable practices. The statement goes on to say the government will continue monitoring Bill C-6, which is an Act to amend the Criminal Code introduced by the federal government that would criminalize conversion therapy across Canada.

13 of 14 Saskatchewan Conservative MP’s voted against that ban earlier this year.