Why do same-sex couples have to be allowed to marry? Why not offer gays and lesbians something else, such as civil unions?
The so-called “separate but equal” civil union model is not an option. The Supreme Court of Canada explicitly stated that “civil unions are a relationship short of marriage”. The Court also stated clearly that Parliament has the power to define marriage and provinces have the power to create civil unions. This means that the Parliament of Canada cannot enact civil unions for same-sex couples, and still honour the Constitution. Any uniform national system of civil unions would require the ten provinces and three territories to enact identical laws in their jurisdictions. We know that the Ontario and B.C. courts of appeal have already ruled that civil unions for same-sex couples would be unconstitutional. The only reason for promoting civil unions is to restrict marriage to opposite-sex couples and deny it to same-sex couples. That is unconstitutional and in direct contradiction to the Charter. The Government of Canada believes in the values of the Charter, and therefore cannot support a
