The leader of OneBC, the newest political party in British Columbia, says her party plans to propose legislation aimed at limiting child gender transitions and reinforcing parental rights, after an initial attempt at such a bill was defeated before first reading in the legislature this month.
OneBC MLA Dallas Brodie formed the new party in June alongside fellow MLA Tara Armstrong. Both Brodie and Armstrong are former B.C. Conservative members.
Brodie said OneBC will continue its work on countering medical gender transitions for minors and opposing the promotion of childhood gender transitioning in B.C. schools through upcoming legislation.
“We will continue to work on this file,” Brodie said in an Oct. 10 interview with the Epoch Times on the planned legislation. “I don’t know whether we’ll just be amending that or bringing something new, but we will be pushing ahead on this, on every opportunity we can to let people know where OneBC stands: that we stand for returning control to parents and removing indoctrination from our schools, both K through 12 and post-secondary.”
A private members’ bill on the issue brought forward by Armstrong was voted down 48-40 on Oct. 8 before first reading. The governing NDP voted against it, while the B.C. Conservatives voted in favour of the legislation.
Armstrong’s proposed legislation aimed to prohibit gender transition surgeries in the province for those under age 18. It also sought to prevent public funding from being directed toward the promotion or support of both gender transition surgeries for minors and the prescription of puberty blockers.
The legislation also included expanded rights for parents to file lawsuits against medical professionals who had offered their child gender transition procedures or promoted them, and barred schools from promoting gender transition procedures, engaging in “social” transitioning, or calling students by new pronouns without parental consent.
The bill was introduced Oct. 8 following a morning presentation at the B.C. legislature by parent and activist Chris Elston, who outlined his views on the mental and physical dangers of childhood gender transitioning. Known as “Billboard Chris,” Elston has become well-known for travelling around the world and standing in public places with billboards opposing child gender transition, while engaging in conversations with members of the public.
B.C. Attorney General and Deputy Premier Niki Sharma criticized OneBC’s bill, saying it was intolerant and represented interference in private decisions.
“We believe that we shouldn’t be picking on vulnerable kids and the decisions that their parents make with their doctors,” Sharma said Oct. 8.
“It’s another sad day in the B.C. legislature when conservative politicians are trying to dictate what parents should be doing and decisions they should be making with love and support for their children.”
Brodie says the legislation aims to protect children from sexualization in a variety of forms, such as books with graphic content in school libraries, or potentially being encouraged by educators to transition without parents’ knowledge. She argues that the bill safeguards parental authority, protecting it from institutional and government overreach.
Brodie said OneBC will also oppose land acknowledgements, which are now widely practiced in B.C. schools, critical race theory, and what she describes as alarmism over climate change.
“It’s just gone too far. We need to return to teaching children how to think, not what to think,” Brodie said, adding that her party will also focus on health care and the economy.
OneBC was formed following Brodie’s expulsion from the B.C. Conservative Party, which occurred after she made comments about Canada’s residential school system.
Armstrong and MLA Jordan Kealy also quit the B.C. Conservatives in solidarity. Kealy now serves as an independent MLA in the B.C. legislature while Brodie and Armstrong formed OneBC on June 11 as an alternative to the Conservatives.
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