Mr. Speaker, I listened very carefully to the mover of the motion. He made some very good points, one of which I believe is absolutely critical. He enunciated the concerns of Canadians, that is, the potential ramifications which are not stated in the bill and for which there are all kinds of assurances outside of the bill.
The hon. member discussed discrimination. Clearly Canadians do not support discrimination. Clearly Canadians want to ensure that no one is discriminated against. The point is the potential ramifications outlined by the hon. member.
What disturbs me follows from the attempts which were made by the hon. member to find out why the words were changed. This statute has been in place for many years. It has been interpreted by the courts, based on the language in the act. All of a sudden, at the same time that those two contentious words are being added, we are being asked to change other wording in section 2.
The hon. member tells us that he attempted to find out the legal rationalization for making those changes. He tells us that the justice department was unable to give him any legal rationalization. Indeed, I would suggest that there is no rationalization for making those changes, unless it is to do precisely what the hon. member suggests, to address groups instead of individuals.
The problem is that we have not yet heard anyone from the justice department express a clear reason why these words are being changed. In the absence of a clear reason to change a statute which is already in place and which has been judicially interpreted, I believe there is no clear reason to change the words. Therefore, I am in complete support of the motion put forward by the hon. member for Hamilton-Wentworth. I await a justification, from either the parliamentary secretary or the Minister of Justice, for this change in words and a convincing argument why we should accept these words as opposed to leaving section 2 as it now stands, with the exception of the addition of the words sexual orientation.
I repeat, if there is no reason to make the change, there is no reason to vote for the change. I support the amendment of the hon. member.