A possible attempt to reopen
the abortion debate
(Ottawa) A bill that the Liberals say has the potential to reopen the abortion debate was tabled Monday by a Conservative elected official who is not at her first attempt in this matter. The Conservative Party assures that this is not the intention.
MÉLANIE MARQUISTHE PRESSThe elected official who introduced private member's Bill C-311, Saskatchewan's Cathay Wagantall, has tried several times to reopen the debate on the legal status of the fetus in recent years.
This time, she proposes to add two offences to the Criminal Code so that "the crimes of knowingly assaulting a pregnant woman and causing physical or emotional harm to a pregnant woman are considered by judges" in sentencing.
The Trudeau government wants to give itself time to analyze the bill, but already, Montreal MP Rachel Bendayan expresses concern that Cathay Wagantall wants to "open the debate through the back door."
"I know a little bit about her history, she has repeatedly demonstrated that this is a priority," Bendayan said, noting that in the last Conservative leadership race, MP Wagantall supported Leslyn Lewis, who is also fiercely anti-abortion.
The victor, Pierre Poilievre, vowed like his predecessors that the debate on abortion would remain closed under his leadership, and that he would let his MPs vote freely in the event that a private member's bill was put to a vote.
"But I'm worried, and the government is worried," Bendayan said in an interview. After the overthrow of Roe v. Wade in the United States, I do not think that right can be taken for granted, even in Canada. »
'Nothing to do' with abortionThe Quebec lieutenant of the Conservative Party, Pierre Paul-Hus, assures that C-311 has "nothing to do with abortion", and that its objective is rather in favor of a "determination of an aggravating factor to attack a pregnant woman".
"And I hope all parliamentarians will support it," he urges.
It is rare for private members' bills to travel very far through the House of Commons. For example, the last one tabled by Ms. Wagantall on gender-selective abortions was never debated in the House.
MÉLANIE MARQUISTHE PRESSThe elected official who introduced private member's Bill C-311, Saskatchewan's Cathay Wagantall, has tried several times to reopen the debate on the legal status of the fetus in recent years.
This time, she proposes to add two offences to the Criminal Code so that "the crimes of knowingly assaulting a pregnant woman and causing physical or emotional harm to a pregnant woman are considered by judges" in sentencing.
The Trudeau government wants to give itself time to analyze the bill, but already, Montreal MP Rachel Bendayan expresses concern that Cathay Wagantall wants to "open the debate through the back door."
"I know a little bit about her history, she has repeatedly demonstrated that this is a priority," Bendayan said, noting that in the last Conservative leadership race, MP Wagantall supported Leslyn Lewis, who is also fiercely anti-abortion.
The victor, Pierre Poilievre, vowed like his predecessors that the debate on abortion would remain closed under his leadership, and that he would let his MPs vote freely in the event that a private member's bill was put to a vote.
"But I'm worried, and the government is worried," Bendayan said in an interview. After the overthrow of Roe v. Wade in the United States, I do not think that right can be taken for granted, even in Canada. »
'Nothing to do' with abortionThe Quebec lieutenant of the Conservative Party, Pierre Paul-Hus, assures that C-311 has "nothing to do with abortion", and that its objective is rather in favor of a "determination of an aggravating factor to attack a pregnant woman".
"And I hope all parliamentarians will support it," he urges.
It is rare for private members' bills to travel very far through the House of Commons. For example, the last one tabled by Ms. Wagantall on gender-selective abortions was never debated in the House.
