TORONTO — Premier Kathleen Wynne says the Ontario government will pass legislation to change the definition of parents so same-sex couples don't have to adopt their own children.
Wynne says the province's laws are outdated and do not reflect current views on who can form a family.
New Democrat Cheri DiNovo introduced a private member's bill last fall to make birth registration services available to all LGBTQ families, saying it's not right that parents should have to adopt their own children.
In a speech today to the gay rights group EGALE, Wynne thanked DiNovo for her efforts to help gay and lesbian parents get the same legal rights as male-and-female couples.
Wynne says she is committed to fixing the problem and wants to see the definition of parents changed in law by the end of this year.
The Liberals will introduce their own legislation in September that Wynne said will ensure parents are clearly recognized, "whether they be gay or straight, and whether their children are conceived with or without assistance."
She promised the government would work with DiNovo and will draft a bill that is consistent with the veteran New Democrat's work on the file.
An Ontario judge ruled in 2006 that the Children's Law Reform Act was "clearly outdated," but it still hasn't been updated, which has forced some gay and lesbian couples to go to court to be legally recognized as parents of their own children.
