Mr. Speaker, it is with great pleasure and with the sense of some responsibility that I speak to Bill C-41 this morning.
At the outset, it is important to say, and it cannot be said often enough, it will be said and repeated until everyone knows, especially in Quebec. With divorce being under federal jurisdiction, while marriage is, as we know-the civil code in general is different in Quebec-under provincial jurisdiction, in the area of child support, there is a risk of finding ourselves in a situation where the Quebec and the Canadian models as expressed by the federal guidelines risk running into each other.
It is important to note that about 40 per cent of child support cases do not depend, because of the factor that I just mentioned, that is, that divorce is under federal jurisdiction. So, there would be about 40 per cent of child support cases that would elude the federal guidelines. That is undoubtedly one of the reasons why it is proposed in the bill that the application of the definition of guidelines be given to the provinces.
However, we do not want to take any chance that federal arbitrariness applies. The hon. member for Québec, who worked particularly hard on this issue, has proposed a series of amendments, including an amendment asking that the province be designated if it meets-and it is required to do so because, once again, of the federal jurisdiction-the requirements provided by the act at section 26.1 in order to meet the requirements provided in this bill by the federal government.
The federal government would have no choice but to designate Quebec, if Quebec so wanted, and we know that this is the case. Some provinces may want to, but others may not. We in the Bloc Quebecois have noted that even in other areas of federal jurisdiction, some provinces that do not fear for their identity in putting themselves in the hands of the central government may not want these provisions. This is not the case in Quebec, with its different civil code which it cares about as much as it does about language and which explains the kind of different, not to say distinct, society Quebec has set up. It is therefore essential that the central government understand the need to exclude any possibility of arbitrary decisions.
It must also be pointed out that other provinces may wish to define their own guidelines, for example because of the differences in the labour market and average income levels among the various provinces.
I should remind the House that the federal government has just introduced in this House a bill aligning the federal minimum wage rate with that in effect in each province. Well, in some provinces the minimum wage is $4.75, compared to $7 in others. This says a lot about the differences in the labour market and income levels among Canada's provinces. If a province takes the trouble of fulfilling all its obligations and wants to define and implement its own guidelines, it should be able to do so.
This demand for guidelines, which comes through all the amendments tabled by the Bloc, and in a way by the Reform Party, was put forward by women a long time ago. Why?
Although some divorces are amicable, others are not, unfortunately, in this society where love is not eternal. The child's interests should be paramount, but some parents may not be able to reach an agreement in this regard. Unfortunately, legal intervention becomes necessary when the relationship between the people involved prevents them from striking a balance and giving priority to the children.
When divorces are not amicable, women-because they are generally the ones affected-must be able to count on some real support. These guidelines are designed so that women will not have to face undue pressure. As we know, this undue pressure can be brought to bear in a trial. A trial does not guarantee there will be no pressure, far from it.
So it is quite disturbing to see in this bill two clauses that seem to contradict each other. One stipulates that the judge may recognize agreements or orders giving one or more children more than provided for in the guidelines. That is okay, except that, according to another clause, the judge may agree that an agreement outside the guidelines is not unreasonable.
Of course, if we put these two clauses side by side, the second one means an agreement was reached for less than what is specified in the guidelines. This would go against the repeated demand for clear, universal guidelines, because it could be assumed from the outset that some judges may not feel bound by the guidelines. If the child is to get more, we can understand that such an agreement can be recognized. However, if the child is to get less, then we
cannot understand because this provision brings back into play all the pressures that women can be subjected to during a trial.
Despite what my colleague said, I hope members opposite will soon realize that they are destroying what they have just accomplished belatedly after so many women experienced so many problems.
I would also like to mention how important it is to base the decision as to which guidelines will apply on the child's place of residence. Here again we feel that the amendment we have brought forward should be accepted to avoid problems that would cause excessive and inexcusable delays.
We think it is absolutely essential that decisions be made without delay so that women who have custody of their children can have access to the money to which they are entitled for the happiness and the standard of living of the children.
In closing, I would like to mention that the central government must make moderate use of its power in this area. Family policies, as shown by Quebec last week, must be modelled on society. In the case of Quebec, it is extremely clear that the guidelines regarding family support obligations in case of divorce or separation must be modelled on our society's values and way of living.
The amendments brought forward by my colleague make sense, and the government would be well advised to accept them.