Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, later on today the Legislative Assembly will consider "The Justice House" Report of the Special Advisor on Gender Equality. The honourable Members may be aware that I have not always been enthusiastic about the initiative, Mr. Speaker. However, I wish to indicate that I consider "The Justice House" Report of the Special Advisor on Gender Equality to be a significant document and one that is worthy of the full attention of this House.

As with any major comprehensive report, some of the findings are easy to agree with and some are not. I am pleased, for instance, to note the special advisor's recommendations regarding the use of clean language in the courthouse and court rooms, and I agree with her recognition of the need to encourage public education programs about legal systems. I fully support her recommendation that we should take a strong stance in demanding that the federal government maintain its commitment to cost shared funding for criminal injuries, compensation and victims' assistance. I am in complete agreement also with the special advisor's recommendation regarding the discipline of judges, including the development of a procedure of lodging anonymous complaints and the establishment of a code of contact and judicial ethics. Yes, Mr. Speaker, much of the contents of "The Justice House" is commendable.

I do wish to comment, however, on what I perceive as two disadvantages of this sort of review. First, I think it should be noted that the majority of the special advisor's findings raised issues that are relevant to both men and women who become involved in the justice system. In identifying certain issues as feminist issues or matters of gender equality, there is a risk that we may create a type of thinking that actually reinforces existing biases and can potentially lead to the development of even worse double standards.

Secondly, if we must identify certain shortcomings within the justice system as having an impact on women, then we should never lose sight of the fact that it is aboriginal...