July 21, 1994
BREITKREUZ ENCOURAGED BY POLL SUPPORTING STRONGER FAMILIES
Garry Breitkreuz, MP for Yorkton-Melville, was pleasantly surprised by the results of an Angus Reid poll released by the Minister of Human Resources Development on Tuesday. The poll was commissioned by the government to measure public attitudes regarding various ideas for reforming Canada's social programs.
"Ninety-two percent of my constituents do not want marriage redefined and this poll provides more evidence that Canadian people think the traditional family is the fundamental social and economic building block in our society," said Breitkreuz.
Here are some of the results which Reformers will find most useful when Parliament resumes in the fall:
o55% of the respondents believed that if people just took more responsibility for themselves and their families we wouldn't need all of these social programs. Only 31% of the respondents disagreed with this statement.
o68% thought that families with dependent children should be entitled to benefits through the tax system that other families without children are not entitled to.
o57% of the respondents thought it would be good news if the government would provide financial assistance to help one parent in a two parent family stay at home to raise their children.
o68% supported the government providing benefits for middle and low income families with children under the age of 18 years living at home.
oOnly 33% disagreed with the idea that the government should provide financial assistance to allow people to stay at home to look after elderly family members.
.63% thought parents should be responsible for helping their children pay their tuition and living expenses at university.
"Most people in my constituency want to reverse the trend of government policies that undermine the inherent strength of our traditional families. Clearly, spending more money on government social programs and making families more dependent on government handouts is not the answer. These poll results indicate that Canadians believe strongly in personal and parental responsibility," said Breitkreuz.
"The government should be giving families greater responsibility for their own affairs by reducing government spending, reducing the deficit and reducing taxes so families have more money to spend on the things they and their children really need. I believe the government should overhaul the income tax system so that legally married families with children under the age of eighteen or families caring for elderly family members at home, receive the most preferential tax treatment. Also, the government should provide Canadian families with financial options which give them a choice of where and how they want to care for their children and not get fixated on an expensive national day care program," stated Breitkreuz.
"Reformers are pleased to be on the same side as the vast majority of Canadians who support traditional families. There is great pressure being placed on the federal government by special interest groups to redefine the family to include almost anyone who lives together. Reformers believe this would be a move in the wrong direction which most Canadians would not support," concluded Breitkreuz.
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