Petition to make public nudity in Canada legal sponsored by Green Party leader – again

The first petition sponsored by May was in 2022

Published Nov 04, 2026  •  Last updated 19 minutes ago  •  2 minute read

Green Party Leader Elizabeth May speaks with reporters in West Block on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Ont. on Monday, Sept. 16 2024. Photo by Bryan Passifiume /Toronto Sun

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Could public nudity of the “non-sexual variety” become legal in Canada?

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For the second time in four years, Green Party of Canada leader Elizabeth May is sponsoring a petition, launched by Gibsons, B.C. resident Scott Bleackley, asking the feds to legalize “non-sexual” public nudity, reports CTV News.

The petition says recreational naturism is “enjoyed by a significant percentage of Canadians,” and should be okay baring — pun intended — any lewd or otherwise unlawful behaviour.

The sponsored petition is calling on the Criminal Code, which currently makes being “nude in a public place” illegal, to be amended so that nakedness “does not, in itself, constitute indecent conduct.”

Back in 2022 during the first petition, May — who represents Saanich-Gulf Islands — told CTV News she didn’t support the movement to allow public nudity, only a petitioners’ right to be heard in Ottawa.

When queried about May’s decision to sponsor the nudity petition for a second time, a Green Party spokesperson said her position “remains the same.”

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“She believes it is the duty of an MP to ensure citizens can use parliamentary petitions to obtain answers from the government,” the spokesperson said in an email to CTV.

“Regarding the latest petition, Elizabeth notes that the government has changed since 2022.”

500 signatures needed for online petition

Online petitions require at least 500 signatures before they can be certified and tabled in the House of Commons.

The latest petition, which is available to sign until March 2, had 365 signatures as of Tuesday afternoon.

The earlier public nudity petition, which was started by James Andrew Porter of North Saanich, B.C., was signed 1,760 times before May presented it in December 2022.

At the time, the government tabled a response that criminal prohibition against public nudity plays a role in “protecting the public from harmful conduct,” while also noting “not all acts of public nudity are criminal.”

Currently, Vancouver’s Wreck Beach is among a limited number of designated areas in Canada where nudity is allowed, while courts in several provinces, including B.C., have also allowed women to be topless in public.

However, even taking off your clothes on private property can be illegal if done in view of the public.

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