Poilievre Would Invoke Notwithstanding Clause to Restore Child Porn Sentences

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre speaks during a meeting of the Conservative caucus on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Sept. 14, 2025, one day before the House of Commons returns for the next session of Parliament. The Canadian Press/Justin TangConservative Leader Pierre Poilievre says he would use the notwithstanding clause and legislate mandatory prison time for child porn offences after the Supreme Court of Canada struck down mandatory minimum sentences for child pornography.In a 5-4 decision released on Oct. 31, the court called the mandatory sentences “unconstitutional.”Poilievre said those convicted of such offences “must face” mandatory prison time. ”The Supreme Court ruling today removing those penalties was dead wrong,” he said in an Oct. 31 post on X.“Conservatives will use the Notwithstanding Clause to protect the rights of children by locking up child porn users with mandatory prison time,” Poilievre said, adding “we must protect our children.”