Mr. Speaker, there seems to be confusion about defining the family.
Yet for a millennia the term has been understood worldwide. Ancient Assyrian, Babylonian, Hebrew, Hittite and Roman law refer often to the family and assume the common understanding. Current legal definitions also support what the vast majority of Canadians believe. From the Income Tax Act to the Oxford English Dictionary the definition is clear and I do not think we can improve on it.
The Dictionary of Canadian Law states: "Family includes a man and a woman living together as husband and wife, whether or not married in a permanent relationship, or the survivor of either, and includes the children of both or either, natural or adopted-and any person lawfully related to any of the aforementioned persons".
The Minister of Justice has indicated his great respect for jurisprudence. We hope he will take into account historic, global precedents, along with the volumes of western jurisprudence before responding to the demands of special interest groups to redefine the family.