Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Well, we are in many of these clauses saying that spouse includes people who are not married but co-habit. I don't expect the Member would think that we would continue to prohibit that definition from being changed. That's one of the things that we are recognizing. There is no discussion of marriage in this act. As I said in my opening comments, until the definition is changed by the federal government or a court decision is made in our jurisdiction, then the definition of marriage remains the same. But a spouse doesn't have to be somebody who is legally married to another person. Yes, we are changing the definition of spouse in here to include that so that the people who are not legally married are considered spouses.
Charles Dent on Committee Motion 34-15(3) To Amend Clause 5 Of Bill 17: Modernization Of Benefits And Obligations Act, Carried
In the Legislative Assembly on March 9th, 2005. See this statement in context.
Committee Motion 34-15(3) To Amend Clause 5 Of Bill 17: Modernization Of Benefits And Obligations Act, Carried
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
March 8th, 2005
Page 1923
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