The president of the local NDP association is condemning comments made by Brantford-Brant MP Will Bouma at an anti-abortion rally last week in front of Queen’s Park.

Although most of the media attention has been on a speech given by Niagara West MPP Sam Oosterhoff who vowed to make abortion “unthinkable,” Bouma also read from notes while standing on a stage at the rally.

“I can’t believe I get to be present for the first ever pro-life march in Toronto,” Bouma told the cheering crowd. “So many different people coming together to remind the world that it’s OK to stand for life.”

Bouma, before quoting from the Bible, told the crowd that “life is continually being devalued” through social media feeds, and the consumption of movies and other types of entertainment.

Bouma asked the rally participants why they were there.

“Are you here to stop death or are you here for life? We are not anti-abortion but pro-life.”

Later, Oosterhoff told the crowd “children should be allowed to live, no matter how small they are.”

“We have survived 50 years of abortion in Canada and we pledge to fight to make abortion unthinkable in our lifetime,” he said.

Also attending the Toronto March for Life rally was fellow Conservative MPP Christina Mitas, who represents Scarborough Centre.

“The Brantford-Brant NDP denounces these extreme statements in the strongest terms and we call on all local leaders to denounce these archaic views as well,” said Myles Hosie, president of the Brantford-Brant NDP Riding Association.

“Not only is abortion a long-settled legal issue in Canada but, when polled, it is a right that three quarters of Canadians support. The views of Mr. Bouma and Mr. Oosterhoff do not reflect the opinions of the majority of Canadians and the majority of the people of Brantford-Brant.”

When asked by The Expositor to comment on his participation in the rally, Bouma’s office responded only with a statement echoing what Ontario Premier Doug Ford said when questioned about whether he supported the comments made by the MPPs.

“We welcome members from a wide variety of backgrounds, beliefs and religions,” said the statement. “Our government is focused on protecting what matters most, cleaning up a fiscal mess left, making Ontario open for jobs, and lowering taxes for families. The premier was clear that the government will not re-open the abortion debate.”

Hosie said “a woman’s right to choose is not just a matter of abortion, it is a health issue and a matter of a woman’s right to personal autonomy.”

“The PC party as a whole must decide if they accept such extreme positions in the party or not,” he said.

Abortion in Canada is legal at all stages of pregnancy. Regulations and accessibility vary between provinces.

On Thursday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he is deeply disappointed in a “backsliding on women’s rights” happening in American states moving to ban abortion access.

Alabama’s legislature passed a law banning virtually all abortions in the state, as other southern and midwestern states make similar moves.

Trudeau told reporters in France he regrets these U.S. developments and said Canada would remain unequivocal in its defence of a woman’s right to end a pregnancy.

He also called out Conservative politicians for supporting anti-abortion initiatives — something Gender Equality Minister Maryam Monsef also did on Wednesday.

Monsef sent a letter to 12 Conservative MPs, including Brantford-Brant MP Phil McColeman, chastising them for marching in an anti-abortion rally on Parliament Hill last week — which she says shows their willingness to re-open the abortion debate in Canada.

— With files from Canadian Press