In fact, I find it interesting that you raise that question, because I spoke with Pierre Allard, of the Royal Canadian Legion, on Friday, and with Joe Taylor, by way of conference call. In that conference call, Mr. Allard surprised me by saying he's not even happy with 1910. He wants to go back to 1867.
Listen, I keep on using the example of Borneo because I think it's so ridiculous. When we're talking about Canada, yes, there may not have been a Citizenship Act, but the spirit of Canadian citizenship existed. My mother was born in 1917, in Bathurst, New Brunswick. She's a Canadian. My father was born in Quebec, in 1915. He's a Canadian. These war bride children are people who were born to Canadian servicemen. Joe Taylor is a Canadian. You can't revise it.
It's the spirit of Canadian citizenship. Even the Canadian government documents prove it. In 1942, 1943, 1944, 1945, they were saying “Canadian citizenship”. They are definitely saying citizenship. Prime Minister Mackenzie King was welcoming war brides in August 1946, saying, “Welcome, Canadian citizens”. The Minister of Veterans Affairs in 1946 was saying that war brides were Canadian citizens.
So, yes, it is a continuum, as Mr. Kish said last week from the Legion. There is a continuum of citizenship. Just because a thing called the Citizenship Act came into being on January 1, 1947, that doesn't mean everybody who lived in Canada before then wasn't a Canadian.
I hope that answers your question.