Mr. Speaker, I rise today to present a petition dealing with section 43. I have in my hand petitions from over 175 individuals from Manitoba, 350 from the New Market-St. Catharines-Beamsville area, 25 from the Calgary area, 125 from Beamsville, Ontario, and another 25 signatures from Calgary.
These people draw to the attention of the House that section 43 recognizes the primary role of parents in raising and disciplining their children, that the federal government is under pressure from various sources including the UN to change section 43, that the removal of section 43 would strengthen the role of bureaucrats and weaken the role of parents, and that the government now continues to fund research by people opposed to its removal.
These petitioners request Parliament to affirm the duty of parents to responsibly raise their children according to their own conscience and beliefs and to retain section 43 in Canada's Criminal Code as it is currently worded.