moved for leave to introduce Bill C-266, an act to provide for the issuance of the Memorial Cross as a memento of personal loss.
Mr. Speaker, as all Canadians know, when an armed forces person dies in the line of duty, the mother of that victim receives the Memorial Cross as a symbol of her sacrifice for all of Canada.There is another person who also suffers a great loss and that is the father of the armed forces member. This bill aims to extend the Memorial Cross award so that not only the mother, but the father of the soldier, airman or crew who dies in the line of duty is also recognized by the sacrifice.
As we know, the grief of the mother is not to be diminished in any way, but the grief of the father is as equal. I believe it is now time in the modernization of our country to allow both parents to receive the Memorial Cross as a symbol of their great sacrifice to all of Canada.
(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)