March 29, 1998

The high court is expected to rule Thursday in the case of Delwin Vriend, an instructor who was fired from his job at an Edmonton Christian college because of his sexual orientation. Vriend took his case to the Supreme Court last fall after lower courts in Alberta ruled the government was under no obligation to extend human rights protection to gays and lesbians.

Klein announced formation of the task force following a weekend party policy conference in Red Deer, which he said touched only briefly on the gay rights issue. While the premier is considered a moderate on the issue, many members of his party including senior cabinet ministers believe extending gay rights condones a lifestyle they consider unnatural. "I have no idea what (the court) decision is going to be but nonetheless we have to anticipate the court saying certain things. Based on those assumptions, there are some options that can be considered to deal with these situations."

The task force includes Justice Minister Jon Havelock, Treasurer Stockwell Day, Community Development Minister Shirley McClellan and Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dave Hancock. Klein refused to say if the task force is considering use of the constitutional opting-out clause to override the court's ruling.

Earlier this month, Klein and Havelock were forced to withdraw a controversial bill that would have used the notwithstanding clause to block court access to hundreds of sterilization victims suing the government. An Alberta law on the books from the 1920s to the early 1970s allowed forced sterilization of mental patients. Klein defended having access to the clause which allows provinces to override the Charter of Rights, given a feeling in his cabinet that increasingly the courts are taking over the role of making laws. "It's becoming of some concern to lawmakers throughout the country that so many laws are being dictated by the courts," Klein said.