TANNARA YELLAND
News Editor

It was almost an hour and a half into the two-hour candidates’ debate before an audience member asked candidates to address the issue that had brought national scrutiny to Saskatoon-Humboldt incumbent Conservative Brad Trost.

The medical student who raised the question listed the various services the International Planned Parenthood Federation offers other than abortion, from disease testing to advocacy. He then asked candidates how these services should be offered if funding to IPPF is denied.

Trost took the question first, smiling as he looked at the small cluster of cameras and acknowledged that this was the reason they had all shown up. He said he has always been open about his position as a social conservative, and has been equally forthright about his pro-life views.

Trost garnered national attention for telling the Saskatchewan ProLife Association on Saturday, April 16 that the federal government has decided to defund IPPF and thanking them for their efforts, saying the grassroots help was integral to achieving their shared goal.

The federal government has not officially announced whether funding will be denied to IPPF, and has sought to distance itself from the issue. Prime Minister Stephen Harper has said that this is not an issue for Canadian voters.

Trost has been more available than many Conservative candidates and incumbents across the country. In an election cycle where many Conservatives have been partly or even wholly absent from public light, Trost both attended the candidates’ debate and remained afterward, talking to students and media alike.

“We’ve defunded Planned Parenthood for the last 16 months,” he said, referring to the fact that funding applications from IPPF have been in limbo since late 2009. Those applications have never been formally denied, but as they have also not been approved, no funding has been issued.

Adamant in his position, Trost claimed to be representative of the majority of his constituents, drawing vigorous disagreement from both NDP candidate Denise Kouri and Liberal candidate and current city councillor Darren Hill.

Both Hill and Kouri claimed that Trost does not represent them, and each of their statements elicited applause.

After the debate Trost said he knew he was entering a less than friendly environment in attending a debate at the University of Saskatchewan. It was evident from the tone of several questions that the students asking them were not supportive of the Conservative candidate or party. However, he held that he has done his best to make himself available to the public.

“But I’m not going to answer the CBC if they call my family’s house at 8pm,” he said.