OTTAWA, June 9, 2011 (LifeSiteNews.com) – The newly elected Speaker of the Canadian House of Commons, Andrew Scheer, is only 32, making him the youngest MP ever to be elected to this prestigious position in Canada’s parliament: but he already has a long history as an outspoken supporter of life and the traditional family.
Campaign Life Coalition, the political arm of Canada’s pro-life movement, has rated Scheer pro-life and pro-family based on his voting record and public statements.
Originally from Ottawa, Scheer first ran for office in 2004 at the age of 25. He ran under the banner of the new Conservative Party of Canada in the NDP’s Saskatchewan stronghold of Regina-Qu’Appelle, defeating former NDP leadership candidate Lorne Nystrom.
At the time, the same-sex “marriage” debate was making news. During the election Scheer kept the issue “front and centre” and stated unapologetically that he supported traditional marriage. He has credited his stance with helping him win, observing that both his Liberal and NDP opponents supported same-sex “marriage” while many constituents were either opposed or uncomfortable with changing the definition of marriage.
He told the House when the gay “marriage” bill, C-38, came to a vote the following year, that, “(The bill) is abhorrent to me, to other Catholics and to every member of every faith community.”
In 2006 Vote Marriage Canada, a national campaign calling on the next Parliament to restore and to promote marriage as the legal union of one man and one woman, endorsed Scheer as a pro-marriage candidate in the upcoming federal election.
“[Andrew Scheer] voted against Bill C-38 and opposed the change in the legal definition of marriage. [Scheer] has taken a stand and given clear indication of supporting marriage as the legal union of one man and one woman in the next Parliament,” said outgoing Independent Member of Parliament Pat O’Brien on behalf of Vote Marriage Canada.
In 2008, after the Governor General gave the Order of Canada to arch-abortionist Henry Morgentaler, Scheer criticized the appointment as a divisive political move that debased the prestige of the nation’s highest civilian honor.
“I am deeply troubled by the announcement that Henry Morgentaler has been awarded the Order of Canada. I am greatly disappointed that Canada’s highest civilian honour has been politicized and debased by this appointment.” Scheer said. He added: “Henry Morgentaler has been a central figure in a very divisive and emotional debate. Far from uniting Canadians with feelings of pride and appreciation, there is a significant portion of the population who will be outraged by this decision.”
Scheer told The Interim newspaper in 2009 that both politically and personally, “life and family issues are very important to me,” explaining his firm belief that, “Family is the centerpiece on which society is built” and “every other issue affects our families.”
Scheer’s election to the highly respected position of Speaker of the House against six contenders, sends a clear message to Canada’s politicians that standing on the side of life and family is not detrimental to political success.
“I have often said that we are all motivated by the same thing,” Scheer told the House after he was escorted to the Speaker’s chair by Prime Minister Stephen Harper and NDP leader Jack Layton. “We may disagree fundamentally on issues and ideas, but we all do sincerely want Canada to be the best country it can be. I have come to appreciate that on a personal level with each and every member.”
“Your election by secret ballot demonstrates the great confidence that the members of the House have in you, your fairness and, above all, your ability to maintain the dignity and decorum associated with respectful debate,” said Prime Minister Harper in congratulating Scheer.