Conservative premiers ask PM Carney to withdraw court submission to limit use of notwithstanding clause

October 7, 2025

Right Honourable Mark Carney
Prime Minister of Canada
80 Wellington Street
Ottawa ON K1A 0A2

Dear Prime Minister:

In English Montreal School Board, et al v Attorney General of Quebec, et al (SCC File No. 41231), the Supreme Court of Canada will consider important questions about the scope and application of section 33 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, Part I of the Constitution Act, 1982 being Schedule B to the Canada Act 1982 (UK), 1982 c11 (Charter) – better known as the notwithstanding or parliamentary sovereignty clause. As you are aware, the Attorney General of Quebec is the respondent in this appeal, and the Attorneys General of Canada, Ontario, Manitoba, British Columbia, Saskatchewan, and Alberta are participating as interveners.

We write jointly to express our profound disappointment with the content of the federal government’s factum in this appeal. The Attorney General of Canada’s submissions seek to advance never-before-seen limits on the ability of democratically elected legislatures to use the notwithstanding clause. Moreover, Canada’s factum proposes an unclear and unworkable legal standard with no basis in the text of the Constitution.

Put simply, the federal government’s arguments represent a complete disavowal of the constitutional bargain that brought the Charter into being. These arguments threaten national unity by seeking to undermine the sovereignty of provincial legislatures, a fact we will raise for the consideration of the full Council of the Federation given the fundamental implications for Canadian federalism. Indeed, the federal government’s position amounts to a direct attack on the foundational constitutional principles of federalism and democracy.

Section 33 was designed to preserve parliamentary sovereignty with respect to the Charter rights enumerated within it. As we have repeatedly made clear, regardless of our positions on the content of Bill 21, we support the constitutional right of any provincial legislature to invoke the notwithstanding clause.

We jointly ask that the federal government reconsider its approach to the English Montreal School Board, et al v Attorney General of Quebec, et al appeal, and withdraw its written legal argument immediately.

Sincerely,

Danielle Smith
Premier of Alberta

Scott Moe
Premier of Saskatchewan

Doug Ford
Premier of Ontario

François Legault
Premier of Quebec

Tim Houston
Premier of Nova Scotia

c.c.: Honourable Rob Lantz, Premier of Prince Edward Island
Honourable R.J. Simpson, Premier of the Northwest Territories
Honourable Susan Holt, Premier of New Brunswick
Honourable Wab Kinew, Premier of Manitoba
Honourable David Eby, Premier of British Columbia
Honourable John Hogan, Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador
Honourable Mike Pemberton, Premier of Yukon
Honourable P.J. Akeeagok, Premier of Nunavut