Jeremy Cockrill

Cockrill was raised in Chilliwack, British Columbia and graduated from Trinity Western University (TWU) with a Bachelor of Business Administration in 2012.{{Cite web |last=Welsh |first=Eric |date=2020-12-10 |title=TWU alumnus Jeremy Cockrill elected MLA of Saskatchewan riding {{!}} Trinity Western University |url=https://www.theprogress.com/news/chilliwack-export-jeremy-cockrill-elected-mla-of-saskatchewan-riding-1911115 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231020181850/https://www.theprogress.com/news/chilliwack-export-jeremy-cockrill-elected-mla-of-saskatchewan-riding-1911115 |archive-date=2023-10-20 |access-date=2023-07-28 |website=The Chilliwack Progress |language=en}} He served on the board of director of the alumni association of TWU.{{Cite web |title=Alumni Association Board of Directors member Jeremy Cockrill |url=https://archivessearch.twu.ca/alumni-association-board-of-directors-member-jeremy-cockrill |access-date=2023-07-31 |website=Trinity Western University Archives and Special Collections}} Cockrill played high school and college basketball, including with the TWU Spartans, and later coached youth basketball.

From 2010 to 2012, he served as the president of Vital Lines Ltd., a line-painting company in Abbotsford, BC.{{citation needed|date=October 2023}} While in BC, Cockrill also worked in the agriculture and agri-food industries. Before he was elected in 2020, he managed his family's business, Fortress Windows and Doors, in North Battleford, Saskatchewan.

Cockrill won the Saskatchewan Party nomination for The Battlefords ahead of the 2020 provincial election after two-term incumbent Herb Cox announced his retirement.{{Cite news |last=Brown |first=Angela |date=2020-02-28 |title=Jeremy Cockrill wins Battlefords Sask. Party nomination |work=Battlefords Now |url=https://battlefordsnow.com/2020/02/28/jeremy-cockrill-wins-battlefords-sask-party-nomination/ |url-status=live |access-date=2023-10-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231020194252/https://battlefordsnow.com/2020/02/28/jeremy-cockrill-wins-battlefords-sask-party-nomination/ |archive-date=2023-10-20}} In the fall election, Cockrill held the seat for the Saskatchewan Party, receiving 66% of votes. Cockrill was re-elected in the 2024 general election.{{Cite news |last=Brown |first=Angela |date=2024-10-29 |title=Sask Party incumbent Jeremy Cockrill wins race in Battlefords |url=https://www.sasktoday.ca/north/battlefords-news-optimist/sask-party-incumbent-jeremy-cockrill-wins-race-in-battlefords-9725854 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241120224127/https://www.sasktoday.ca/north/battlefords-news-optimist/sask-party-incumbent-jeremy-cockrill-wins-race-in-battlefords-9725854 |archive-date=2024-11-20 |access-date=2024-11-20 |work=Sask Today}}

On May 31, 2022 Cockrill joined Scott Moe's Cabinet when he was named Minister of Highways and the minister responsible for the Water Security Agency.{{cite web |date=2022-05-31 |title=New Provincial Cabinet Sworn in | News and Media |url=https://www.saskatchewan.ca/government/news-and-media/2022/may/31/new-provincial-cabinet-sworn-in |website=Saskatchewan.ca}}

In a cabinet shuffle on August 29, 2023, Cockrill became Minister of Education, taking over from veteran MLA Dustin Duncan.{{Cite news |last=Anton |first=Jessie |last2=Hunter |first2=Adam |date=2023-08-29 |title=Duncan, Merriman among Sask. MLAs moved to new portfolios in cabinet shuffle |work=CBC News |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/sask-cabinet-shuffle-august-2023-1.6950764 |url-status=live |access-date=2023-10-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230831181122/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/sask-cabinet-shuffle-august-2023-1.6950764 |archive-date=2023-08-31}} Cockrill took over the education portfolio as the Saskatchewan Party government was working towards passing new legislation called the "Parents' Bill of Rights". The legislation places restrictions on sexual health education in schools—including banning third-party participation, such as experts on sexual assault—and requires parental consent for students under the age of 16 wishing to have their chosen names and pronouns affirmed at school.{{Cite news |last=Quon |first=Alexander |date=2023-08-22 |title=Youth advocate reviewing Sask. policy requiring schools to get parental permission for pronoun changes |work=CBC News |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/new-education-policies-sex-education-pronoun-use-1.6943641 |url-status=live |access-date=2023-10-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230903002551/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/new-education-policies-sex-education-pronoun-use-1.6943641 |archive-date=2023-09-03}} After an injunction was granted against the proposed policy by a Court of King's Bench justice on September 28, stating a concern that the policy came with the risk of causing "irreparable harm" to vulnerable students, the government recalled the Legislature two weeks early to invoke the notwithstanding clause to have the legislation put in effect.{{Cite news |last=Salloum |first=Alec |last2=Harder |first2=Brandon |last3=Kurz |first3=Larissa |date=2023-09-28 |title=Moe vows to use notwithstanding clause after court injunction halts pronoun policy |work=Regina Leader-Post |url=https://leaderpost.com/news/saskatchewan/judge-grants-injunction-to-halt-saskatchewan-pronoun-policy |url-status=live |access-date=2023-10-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230929002328/https://leaderpost.com/news/saskatchewan/judge-grants-injunction-to-halt-saskatchewan-pronoun-policy |archive-date=2023-09-29}} In October, Cockrill was criticized for incorrectly claiming that "every single government MLA" had heard from constituents that they had children who had been using different pronouns without their knowledge;{{Cite news |last=Kurz |first=Larissa |date=2023-08-29 |title=Moe, new Sask. education minister defend pronoun consent policy |work=Regina Leader-Post |url=https://leaderpost.com/news/local-news/sask-politics/moe-new-sask-education-minister-defend-pronoun-consent-policy |url-status=live |access-date=2023-10-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231020201320/https://leaderpost.com/news/local-news/sask-politics/moe-new-sask-education-minister-defend-pronoun-consent-policy |archive-date=2023-10-20}}{{Cite news |last=Tank |first=Phil |date=2023-10-19 |title=Sask. education minister needs lessons in math, credibility |work=Saskatoon StarPhoenix |url=https://thestarphoenix.com/opinion/columnists/phil-tank-sask-education-minister-needs-lessons-in-math-credibility |url-status=live |access-date=2023-10-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231020200947/https://thestarphoenix.com/opinion/columnists/phil-tank-sask-education-minister-needs-lessons-in-math-credibility |archive-date=2023-10-20}} fellow MLA Everett Hindley immediately refuted this in response to a question, and in an October 3 interview, Premier Moe stated that he had not been made aware of any such discussions with parents.{{Cite web |date=2023-10-03 |title=The Morning Edition with Stefani Langenegger |url=https://www.cbc.ca/listen/live-radio/1-66-the-morning-edition-sask/clip/16013273-premier-scott-moe-talks-hes-recalling-legislature-early |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231020201928/https://www.cbc.ca/listen/live-radio/1-66-the-morning-edition-sask/clip/16013273-premier-scott-moe-talks-hes-recalling-legislature-early |archive-date=2023-10-20 |access-date=2023-10-20 |website=CBC Listen}}{{Cite news |last=Amato |first=Angela |date=2023-10-04 |title=Premier Moe doubles down on wide support for pronoun policy change |work=Regina Leader-Post |url=https://leaderpost.com/news/local-news/moe-doubles-down-on-wide-support-for-pronoun-policy-change-without-evidence |url-status=live |access-date=2023-10-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231005062055/https://leaderpost.com/news/local-news/moe-doubles-down-on-wide-support-for-pronoun-policy-change-without-evidence |archive-date=2023-10-05}} Cockrill also claimed, without providing evidence, that the government had heard from "tens of thousands" of people in support of the policy. A sworn affidavit in court showed that the Ministry of Education had received 18 letters expressing concern about pronouns in school between June and the introduction of the policy in August. However, a national Christian lobbying group called Action4Canada claims to have sent more than 10,000 messages to Moe and Duncan and to have met with Duncan's staff earlier in 2023 to push for the policy.{{Cite news |last=Simes |first=Jeremy |date=2023-09-08 |title='We are not backing down': Premier Moe says legislation on parental rights coming this fall |work=CBC News |agency=The Canadian Press |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/moe-parental-rights-christian-pronoun-1.6961432 |url-status=live |access-date=2023-10-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230909021601/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/moe-parental-rights-christian-pronoun-1.6961432 |archive-date=2023-09-09}} The bill passed into law on October 20, 2023.{{Cite news |last=Hunter |first=Adam |date=2023-10-20 |title=Sask. government passes Parents' Bill of Rights |work=CBC News |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/sask-parental-rights-law-1.7002088 |url-status=live |access-date=2023-10-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231020210141/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/sask-parental-rights-law-1.7002088 |archive-date=2023-10-20}}

The Parents' Bill of Rights, which amended the province's Education Act, also contained a provision making it a legal requirement for schools to fly the Saskatchewan provincial flag. Cockrill stated that the government hoped that this would help to ensure that children "not only are they proud of the country they live in, but also the province they live in".{{Cite news |date=2023-10-22 |title=Saskatchewan flag legally required to be flown at schools as part of parental rights' bill |work=CBC News |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatoon/saskatchewan-flag-legally-required-to-be-flown-at-schools-as-part-of-parental-rights-bill-1.7003784 |url-status=live |access-date=2023-10-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231022201100/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatoon/saskatchewan-flag-legally-required-to-be-flown-at-schools-as-part-of-parental-rights-bill-1.7003784 |archive-date=2023-10-22}}

Cockrill's time as education minister saw negotiations with the Saskatchewan Teachers' Federation (STF) on a new collective bargaining agreement. The STF, which initiated job action beginning in January 2024, accused Cockrill of lying about the federation withdrawing from negotiations, and criticized the government for stonewalling negotiations.{{Cite news |date=2024-02-13 |title=STF refutes education minister's claim teachers left the bargaining table |url=https://leaderpost.com/news/stf-reinstates-sanctions-job-action-as-bargaining-hits-another-impasse |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240214063931/https://leaderpost.com/news/stf-reinstates-sanctions-job-action-as-bargaining-hits-another-impasse |archive-date=2024-02-14 |access-date=2024-05-02 |work=Regina Leader-Post}}{{Cite news |last=Patterson |first=Dayne |last2=Larson |first2=Scott |date=2024-04-18 |title=Sask. Teachers' Federation, education minister remain at odds ahead of vote on contract proposal |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/stf-president-neutrality-contract-proposal-ahead-of-vote-1.7177733 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240419055438/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/stf-president-neutrality-contract-proposal-ahead-of-vote-1.7177733 |archive-date=2024-04-19 |access-date=2024-05-02 |work=CBC News}} Cockrill faced calls to resign after suggesting to a Saskatchewan mother whose child had died that the STF was asking for his "firstborn child"; Cockrill apologized in the Legislature for the comment.{{Cite news |last=Schick |first=Lisa |date=2024-04-22 |title=Sask. NDP calling for Education Minister Jeremy Cockrill’s job |url=https://www.cjme.com/2024/04/22/sask-ndp-calling-for-education-minister-jeremy-cockrills-job/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240502223936/https://www.cjme.com/2024/04/22/sask-ndp-calling-for-education-minister-jeremy-cockrills-job/ |archive-date=2024-05-02 |access-date=2024-05-02 |work=CJME}}{{Cite news |last=Mandryk |first=Murray |date=2024-04-23 |title=Cockrill, other cabinet ministers have become the problem |url=https://leaderpost.com/opinion/columnists/murray-mandryk-cockrill-other-cabinet-ministers-have-become-the-problem |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240423131805/https://leaderpost.com/opinion/columnists/murray-mandryk-cockrill-other-cabinet-ministers-have-become-the-problem |archive-date=2024-04-23 |access-date=2024-05-02 |work=Regina Leader-Post}} After teachers rejected two separate government contract offers in May 2024, the two sides agreed to send the dispute to binding arbitration, slated to take place before the end of 2024.{{Cite news |last=Quon |first=Alexander |date=2024-06-14 |title=Contract dispute between Sask. teachers, province heading to binding arbitration |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/stf-province-binding-arbitration-1.7235748 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614220946/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/stf-province-binding-arbitration-1.7235748 |archive-date=2024-06-14 |access-date=2024-11-20 |work=CBC News}}

Following the 2024 election, Cockrill was named the Minister of Health in the new cabinet.{{Cite news |last=Lovett-Squires |first=Julia |date=2024-11-08 |title='Work to be done': Cockrill takes over as health minister |url=https://battlefordsnow.com/2024/11/08/work-to-be-done-cockrill-takes-over-as-health-minister/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241120222710/https://battlefordsnow.com/2024/11/08/work-to-be-done-cockrill-takes-over-as-health-minister/ |archive-date=2024-11-20 |access-date=2024-11-20 |work=Battlefords Now}}

In 2024, Cockrill became the subject of two separate conflict of interest investigations by the province's Conflict of Interest Commissioner. The first investigation, publicly announced in August, centred on Cockrill's continued connections to Fortress Windows and Doors, which had received public contracts worth hundreds of thousands of dollars after Cockrill was elected.{{Cite news |last=Talati |first=Shlok |date=2024-08-29 |title=Conflict of interest commissioner moves ahead with inquiry on 2 Sask. Party MLAs |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/conflict-of-interest-inquiry-sask-party-mlas-1.7308466 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240830095819/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/conflict-of-interest-inquiry-sask-party-mlas-1.7308466 |archive-date=2024-08-30 |access-date=2024-10-02 |work=CBC News}} In December 2024, the Commissioner found that Cockrill had breached the Act by not stepping away from his business, noted that it was unintentional, and recommended a reprimand.{{Cite news |title=Commissioner rules Cockrill breached Sask. conflict of interest laws, recommends reprimand |url=https://leaderpost.com/news/local-news/sask-politics/commissioner-rules-cockrill-breached-sask-conflict-of-interest-laws-recommends-reprimand |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20241217213723/https://leaderpost.com/news/local-news/sask-politics/commissioner-rules-cockrill-breached-sask-conflict-of-interest-laws-recommends-reprimand |archive-date=2024-12-17 |access-date=2024-12-20 |work=leaderpost |language=en}}

The second investigation, announced in September, targeted Cockrill's personal investments in two helium companies partnering with and receiving tax breaks from the provincial government.{{Cite news |last=Benson |first=Andrew |date=2024-09-25 |title=Jeremy Cockrill subject of 2nd conflict of interest investigation |url=https://globalnews.ca/news/10774977/jeremy-cockrill-subject-of-2nd-conflict-of-interest-investigation/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240926003520/https://globalnews.ca/news/10774977/jeremy-cockrill-subject-of-2nd-conflict-of-interest-investigation/ |archive-date=2024-09-26 |access-date=2024-10-02 |work=Global News}}

{{Canadian election result/top|SK|2024|The Battlefords (provincial electoral district)|The Battlefords|percent=yes|prelim=no}}

{{CANelec|SK|Saskatchewan|Jeremy Cockrill|4,352|59.41}}

{{CANelec|SK|NDP|Tom Krocynski|2,719|37.11}}

{{CANelec|SK|Green|Sara Piotrofsky|140|1.91}}

{{CANelec|SK|Buffalo|Dale Richardson|115|1.57}}

{{Canadian election result/total|Total|7,326|100.0}}

{{CANelec/source|Source: Elections Saskatchewan{{cite web|url=https://results.elections.sk.ca/ |title=2024 General Election Official Results |publisher=Elections Saskatchewan|date=2024-11-09|access-date=2024-11-13}}}}

{{end}}

{{Canadian election result/top|SK|2020|The Battlefords (provincial electoral district)|The Battlefords|percent=yes|prelim=no}}

{{CANelec|SK|Saskatchewan|Jeremy Cockrill|4,477|66.19}}

{{CANelec|SK|NDP|Amber Stewart|1,931|28.55}}

{{CANelec|SK|PC|Harry Zamonsky|231|3.41}}

{{CANelec|SK|Green|Joey Reynolds|125|1.85}}

{{Canadian election result/total|Total|6,764|100.0}}

{{CANelec/source|Source: Elections Saskatchewan{{cite web|url=https://cdn.elections.sk.ca/upload/2020-Statement-of-Votes-Volume-1-web-viewing.pdf |title=A Report on the Twenty-Ninth General Election, Volume I: Statement of Votes |publisher=Elections Saskatchewan|date=2021-06-30|access-date=2024-10-28}}}}

{{end}}

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• [https://www.legassembly.sk.ca/mlas/member-details/?first=Jeremy&last=Cockrill Honourable Jeremy Cockrill, Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan]

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