Liberal Party of Canada Opposes Equal Parenting through Bill PMB C-560

The Liberal Party of Canada will not support Bill C-560 for the wrong reasons.

From: <Sean.Casey@parl.gc.ca>
Date: 17 April 2014 15:39
Subject: RE: Bill C-560 Divorce Law reform Equal Parenting
To: mjmurphy@???.com

Dear Michael,

Thank you for your email on Bill C-560 which is currently before the House of Commons.

From the outset, I wish to convey to you that I have reviewed the Bill thoroughly and I have sought and heard advice from individuals and groups both for and against this initiative.

As Justice spokesperson for the Liberal Party of Canada, it is my duty to assess any given Bills that touch upon the Justice portfolio.

After careful consideration of the facts, I forwarded my views to my colleagues in our parliamentary caucus. The Liberal Caucus had the opportunity to consider the Bill, from a perspective based in facts, and in this instance, taking into consideration the particular sensitivities that arise when dealing with divorce.

After much discussion in our Caucus, it was recommended that the Liberal Party not support this Bill in its current form. I have included a link to my speech on this Bill given in the House of Commons during this Bill’s First Hour of debate. I provide it for your review and to give you a more in-depth perspective of my concerns with the Bill.

The concerns I raised in my speech, specifically, include the “best interest of the child” approach, which is a view that is shared by the former Justice Minister Rob Nicholson as well as the current Conservative Justice Minister, Mr. MacKay. These two senior Conservative Cabinet Ministers have clearly expressed their concern about changing the standard from the “best interest of the child” to one of equal parenting.

As you likely know, there will be a Second Hour debate on this Bill soon. After that Second Hour debate, there will be a vote at Second Reading. It is not clear whether the Bill will pass Second Reading and make its way to Committee. Should it pass Second Reading, and then go to Committee, I can assure you that the legislation will get a fair and open hearing, from all sides and all parties including an opportunity to hear from experts.

I realise that you support this Bill. I also realise that my opposition to the Bill, and that of my colleagues in the Liberal Party, may be of some disappointment to you. I applaud your efforts to bring forth your views on this important issue. It is the proper role of Parliament to debate tough issues, and more importantly, that the debate be robust and respectful of differing opinions.

Again, thank you for your time in writing me and for making your voice heard.

Sincerely
Sean Casey
Member of Parliament - Charlottetown
Link to my speech in the house: http://openparliament.ca/debates/2014/3/25/sean-casey-2/

My response to Mr. Casey:

Subject: Re: Bill C-560 Divorce Law reform Equal Parenting
To: Sean.Casey@parl.gc.ca
April 17, 2014


Thank you for your response to my letter on support for PMB C-560.

There are many myths with respect to shared equal parenting and all have been debunked in jurisdictions where this now occurs. All parents have the best interests of their children as a primary focus while married and in the majority of cases this does not change in divorce. Shutting one parent out, usually the dad, as mom gets sole physical custody in at least 90% of cases in Canada, is not in the best interest of children. It's as though the Liberal Party of Canada were saying dads are not important in their childrens lives after divorce. Social Science says you are wrong. If two fit parents are not equal after divorce, what happened to change that, in your view?

I have attached an analysis by very competent legal minds, accomplished women, and the Canadian Equal Parenting Council who support this bill. I am a member of the CEPC. It walks you through the myths, some of which you are using to oppose the bill, and replaces them with facts. Please review it along with your caucus colleagues for what is really in a child's best interests, that being two fit and equal parents in their lives after divorce. Children are harmed by the current adversarial system both emotionally and financially. Lawyers earn very high incomes in the current adversarial environment much of which would be the children's future college education funding, not to mention basic needs in the current single mom, sole custody environment. Single moms are one of the largest groups in need of social assistance in Canada. Equal parenting may help to drop this significantly.

http://stream1.newswire.ca/media/2014/04/10/20140410_C9348_DOC_EN_39098.pdf