Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says anyone who disagrees that there is a right to abortion is “not in line” with “where we are as a society.”

The remark was prompted at a town hall in Hamilton, Ontario, on Wednesday by an audience member who asked where the government draws the line on free speech.

Mr. Trudeau said “defending rights and freedoms” is a core Canadian value, BuzzFeed News reported, but said the issue of abortion presents particular difficulties.

“An organization that has the explicit purpose of restricting women’s rights by removing rights to abortion, the right for women to control their own bodies, is not in line with where we are as a government and quite frankly where we are as a society,” Mr. Trudeau responded.

Canada recently made changes to its Summer Jobs program, which funds placement in non-profit and public-sector jobs, requiring applicants to adhere to progressive views on abortion and gay rights.

Socially conservative lawmakers and proponents of religious liberty say the policy discriminates against Christians and others with moral reservations about abortion.

“That’s discrimination,” Tory MP Brad Trost said in a video. “Canadians are allowed to have different political views than the government of the day, and they shouldn’t have their funding cut off because they disagree with the government.”

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