Mr. Speaker, I have quite a large number of petitions so I ask for your patience in introducing them.
First I would like to present 87 petitions with the signatures of 2,035 Canadians from seven provinces. They are concerned that by ratifying and implementing the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child that government bureaucrats and the courts, not parents, will be legally entitled to determine what is in the best interests of the child.
The petitioners go on to say that Canada is creating a bureaucracy to police parents and enforce the guidelines in a UN charter, a charter that has never been approved by Parliament. Not only are parental rights being undermined by implementing this UN convention, they are concerned it will create greater incentives for families to abdicate their parental responsibilities to the state.
Finally, your petitioners request Parliament to address their concerns by supporting my private member's motion No. 33, which would include parental rights and responsibilities in the charter of rights and freedoms.