NB News: Prime Minister ‘angry’ over sex education presentation

New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs has taken to social media to vent his anger over a presentation in at least four high schools.

On Friday, Higgs posted on X that a number of parents in the province had shared photos of what he considered “clearly inappropriate” material that had been shown at high schools in the province.

“To say I was angry would be a gross understatement,” Higgs wrote. “This presentation was not part of the New Brunswick curriculum and its content was not communicated to parents in advance.”

The article included a photo of what appeared to be a recent presentation.

A slideshow was shown from a presentation by Thirsty for the Talk, a Quebec-based sexual health education organization for teens and young adults.

There were four chat bubbles with questions like “Is it normal to watch porn like other people watch TV shows?” and “Do girls masturbate?”

Higgs said his office was informed by Department of Education officials that the presentation was supposed to be about HPV.

“However, the group shared materials that went well beyond the scope of an HPV presentation. The fact that this was shared indicates that either improper review was done, that the group misrepresented the content it was going to share… or both,” Higgs said.

With immediate effect, the group is not allowed to perform at any school in the province again.

“Our government will have further discussions about whether additional rules need to be updated for third-party presentations,” Higgs said. “Children should be protected and parents should be respected.”

The post ended with a link to a survey asking parents whether they thought stricter rules on third-party presentations in schools were needed.