Exactly. The Minister of Justice contradicts statements by other cabinet ministers. One example was the Secretary of State for Multiculturalism and responsible for the Status of Women when speaking about who qualifies for benefits under Bill C-23.
Let me talk for a moment about the definition of conjugal relationships. Cabinet ministers appearing as witnesses before the committee that just finished with the bill disagreed on the definition of conjugal relationships. That definition is key to the operation of the bill. One minister says that sexual activity is involved in a conjugal relationship. Another minister says no, it has nothing to do with sex. It shows that this weak, arrogant Liberal government does not know what it is doing.
There are other problems. The justice department's testimony before the committee talked about the ineffectiveness of the justice minister's marriage amendment to the bill. Independent legal opinion confirms the ineffectiveness of the justice minister's marriage amendment. The same opinion supports the very substantive approach of the official opposition.
Finally there is the poor legislative approach inherent in Bill C-23. The Liberals refuse to be clear on who qualifies. How do people know if they qualify? Will the government appoint sex inspectors in everyone's homes?
The Liberals are driving people into court to determine if they qualify for benefits. Many people will be launching lawsuits as soon as the legislation is passed. This weak, arrogant Liberal government which lacks vision is continually forcing important decisions to be made by our courts. The elected representatives of the people should be making those decisions, and not the judiciary.
There are two other problems. Another aspect of the bill the Liberals would like us to ignore is that there is no requirement for information sharing between departments. People could claim a conjugal relationship exists in order to qualify for benefits but claim to be just roommates when it comes to paying obligations. What are the ramifications of the bill as it applies to ongoing obligations after one moves from one relationship to a new relationship with a new partner? The bill says nothing about that.
Let us talk about cost for a moment. Canadians have no information about how much it will cost taxpayers. The Liberals will tell us “Don't worry, be happy. It won't cost much”. Who believes them? They said that they would get rid of the GST. They also said that our military cannot have Cadillac helicopters because they cost too much, and now it has no helicopters.
What about the experts who say that as soon as the legislation is passed every person who lives with another person, regardless of the true relationship, will be applying for benefits? What about the flood of benefits taxpayers will have to pay for if the floodgates are opened? The pundits are correct when they say that it will cost millions and even billions of taxpayer dollars because the bill is so weak, vague and undefined.
This weak Liberal government has no vision, not even a blurred vision. Its lack of vision actually makes its policies anti-family There is nothing that the weak and ineffective Liberal backbenchers, who are mostly from Ontario, can do about it.
Let us look at the anti-family policies of the government. Let us talk about taxes and families. The current taxation system supported and maintained by the Liberals discriminates against families with a stay at home parent. Those families pay 100% more taxes than families where both parents work.
The government has been saying since 1993 in its red book, which has proven to be a red light for meeting its promises, that it would provide a day care program. The Canadian Alliance proposes a 17% tax that would apply to all families equally. We have a pro-family policy.
Let us talk about child pornography. The B.C. court and courts in other provinces if I am correct have struck down our laws against child pornography. The Liberals have done nothing about this except to leave the matter to the courts to deal with. A year and a half has gone by and we have not seen a single bit of improvement or any initiative from the government.
We asked the government to use the constitution's notwithstanding clause to protect our children and allow the anti-pornography laws to remain operable until our elected officials in the House could change the old laws. We have a pro-family policy but the anti-family Liberals will not do that.
The people of Surrey Central are proud to have me co-sponsor and support 19 of the many amendments the official opposition has submitted on the bill. We have offered the government many opportunities to do the right thing. All of my amendments use the same words and state very clearly: “Spouse means either of a man or a woman who has entered into a marriage”. That is the exact text of all 19 of my amendments. My colleagues and I are trying to amend all 68 statutes to strengthen the definition of marriage.
In the time I have remaining I will continue to read excerpts from e-mails and letters that I have received from my constituents. As I said before, I have received a number of letters and e-mails. This one is another letter of support for family values. She says, “My husband and I are completely in agreement with your view that marriage between a man and a woman is the foundation of the family and the basis of our nation. I hope you continue to use your influence to encourage MPs from the other parties to help vote down this bill”. I received many, many more letters.
In conclusion, all these quotes urge the government to adopt our amendments. Remember that strong families make strong communities and stronger communities make a stronger nation.