Finance committee  Thank you for inviting us to appear before this committee today. REAL Women of Canada is a national organization of women from all walks of life and from differing economic, social, cultural, and religious backgrounds. We are united by our concern for the family, the basic unit

Finance committee  Well, there's a need for a REAL Men group, but there isn't one.

Finance committee  Well, it's a very complex issue. We've come to the point where there's almost a necessity for two incomes for Canadians to live the type of life they want and to provide for their children. That makes it automatically difficult for the single-income family, whether there are two

Finance committee  In many cases they are, and we're in favour of women having a choice. Members of our organization come from all professions. We are in law and medicine. We have helicopter pilots in our organization. We have businesswomen. We have grandmothers who haven't worked outside the home

Finance committee  --and sociologists and psychologists recognize that men are different. They don't feel conflicted as much as women do.

Finance committee  Our position is that there should be a wide variety of child care. It could range from the large institutions, if parents want it, to the medium-sized neighbourhood facility, to the ethnic religious group, to the choice of staying at home, or to the choice of having a relative ca

Finance committee  [Inaudible—Editor] We meet groups that are subsidized, and we do not feel treated on a par with those groups.

Finance committee  Some ideologies are funded by the government, while other pro-family groups are disadvantaged.

Finance committee  It is for that reason that we mention other groups.

Finance committee  In terms of taxation, we feel that the family has been neglected for quite a few decades now. This is why, when we examine the taxes paid by families, we notice a tremendous discrepancy, in that the single-income family pays several thousand dollars more than the two-income famil

Finance committee  We're hoping for some consideration for the family on every level.

Finance committee  Thank you, Mr. Chairman and members of the committee. REAL Women of Canada is a national organization of women from all walks of life and from different backgrounds. Since our incorporation in 1983, we have supported the equality of women and recognize them as interdependent mem

Finance committee  It's unfortunate that in the last few decades there has been little consideration of the family unit. We've moved away from the family unit and we've pitted women against men. I think we need to return to looking at the reality of society and what the family contributes. It's dif

Finance committee  Well, that's being seen very clearly in the funding to women's groups. We have been a women's group since 1983. We applied for funding to the Status of Women, and there are hundreds of women's groups--

Finance committee  I'm not saying that society is pitting women against men. I'm saying the imbalance in funding of women's groups has created an imbalance in terms of the direction that has been given to the government from Status of Women, by eliminating groups that value the family and supportin