Mr. Speaker, the European Network of Ombudsmen for Children urges governments to establish independent institutions to promote and protect the rights of children. This network welcomes the trend toward creating special offices to monitor and support the full implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
Children need a special office like a national children's commissioner to protect their human rights. Children lack a political voice as they do not have the right to vote. Children are particularly vulnerable. They are more affected than adults by the conditions under which they live and by the action or inaction of government. Canada's children need a national children's commissioner.