Conservative MP accuses students of free speech attack after campus event cancelled

By Canadian Press on January 8, 2026.

OTTAWA — The cancellation of a planned event at York University has led some Conservative MPs to accuse students there of attacking free speech.

Conservative MP Garnett Genuis says he was denied permission to hold an event on campus on Friday.

But the York University Student Centre says its decision was “not politically motivated in any way” and the event simply didn’t meet its requirements.

Genuis has been touring university campuses, where he’s been striking up conversations with students about youth unemployment and affordability issues.

He says he’s held these events at tables in public spaces, rather than in a separate room, in order to reach more people — and York is the only campus that told him the event had to be in a closed room.

The student centre’s executive director says Genuis is welcome to reapply to hold his event at any time, as long as it meets requirements.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 8, 2026.

Sarah Ritchie, The Canadian Press

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