PUNISHES ALL ... WHO DO NOT AGREE WITH HIS PERSONAL POINT OF VIEW.

block a project in the national interest.”

Trudeau responded by defending the right to advocacy — but defended the attestation as well.

“The commitment that this government has made to stand up and defend reproductive rights and the rights of women at every single opportunity is one that sticks in their craw,” he said. “We will not apologize for ensuring that women’s rights are protected across this country.”

He also argued Conservatives had sought to defund left-leaning organizations and label environmentalists as eco-terrorists.

“We remember the Stephen Harper years that so many of the members opposite were part of where anyone who dared disagree with official government position was persecuted, marginalized, had their funding yanked, shut down,” he said. “We will always support the right of Canadians to express themselves.”

The government has always insisted the attestation refers only to actions, not values or beliefs. But the vague phrase “core mandate” meant many faithbased organizations felt they couldn’t sign it without violating their consciences — even after the government issued a clarification of it on Jan. 23.

There has been vocal dissent in the Liberal caucus over it, and even pro-choice NDP MP David Christopherson protested it by saying it “took away Canadians’ right to disagree with the laws that they have to obey.”

The number of Summer Jobs applicants remained about the same this year, but rejections skyrocketed over the attestation, with 1,561 rejections compared to just 126 last year. The government expects to fund nearly 70,000 student jobs.

“These workplaces will represent an enormous variety of industries, causes, and types of work, none of which are taken into account in the application process, so long as the employer can confirm that the core mandate does not undermine human rights,” said a statement from Employment Minister Patty Hajdu’s office.

Neil MacCarthy, spokesperson for the Catholic Archdiocese of Toronto, said the free speech defence is a tough one to hear now from Trudeau. The parishes and charities in the archdiocese had applied for $1.1 million in Summer Jobs funding this year, but had their forms rejected over the attestation.

“We would expect that the principle of freedom of speech would apply equally to all Canadians on all issues,” he said. “The only consistency on this file seems to be inconsistency in the way it has been communicated, interpreted and implemented.”

It won’t be clear how much money Dogwood gets until after the summer, as it depends on how long each job is filled.