The Liberal cabinet plans to band together to vote against an Alliance motion this week that upholds the traditional definition of marriage, the Prime Minister says.
On Monday, members of Parliament are heading back to a fall session of the House of Commons likely to be dominated by renewed debate on the same-sex marriage issue.
On Tuesday, they will be asked to vote on the Alliance motion, which defines marriage as the union of one man and one woman to the exclusion of all others.
It is a resurrection of a similar Alliance motion introduced in 1999. That year, most Liberals overwhelmingly supported the traditional definition of marriage and voted in favour of the motion, so Tuesday's motion is meant to show how divided the Liberals really are over the issue. A number of Liberal MPs have said they are not in favour of same-sex marriage.
After Liberal cabinet meeting Monday morning, Prime Minister Jean Chrétien indicated that the cabinet would be voting against the bill, although it will be a free vote for other Liberal MPs.
"The cabinet ministers have taken a collective position in June, it's the same thing," he said, referring to the fact that in June, the government declared that it would change the definition of marriage to include gays and lesbians and at the time, the decision had the full support of cabinet.
However, the Prime Minister hinted that while backbench MPs will be free to vote as they wish, it's their duty as good Liberals to help shoot it down.
The federal government decided to legalize same-sex marriage in June after an Ontario court upheld a lower court's decision declaring marriage laws discriminatory to gays and lesbians.
Justice Minister Martin Cauchon told reporters after Monday's cabinet meeting that the wording of the Alliance motion goes against the draft bill that the government has tabled, calling it a "trap" and saying it is a "ticket to use the notwithstanding clause" that would open the door for governments to override the Supreme Court's decision.
The Alliance motion calls on Parliament to use all necessary steps to block gay marriage.All necessary steps would include using the notwithstanding clause in the Constitution.
That clause allows governments to pass laws that violate the Charter of Rights and Freedoms for a period of five years. No federal government has ever used it.
Mr. Chrétien said the Liberal government, as a promoter of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, is opposed to the use of the notwithstanding clause.
He said the Liberals have changed their minds on same-sex marriage because "society [has] evolved."
Last week, Mr. Cauchon said the federal government will not hold a vote to legalize same-sex unions until the Supreme Court renders its opinion on draft legislation.
That means the controversial issue will likely continue to hang over the Liberal Party's leadership vote in November and until next year's federal election as a growing chorus of government MPs demand an earlier vote.
With a report from Canadian Press
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