News

Will Radical Anti-Family UN Policies Be Implemented?  FREDERICTON, Sept 22 (LSN) – Yesterday, New Brunswick Health and Community Services Minister Ann Breault announced plans for a major overhaul of child welfare services in the province in response to a report on the death of a child due to wanton neglect by her parents. While the sentiment to improve child welfare is a noble one, the recommendations and direction of the government are of concern to pro-family advocates.  The first of the 14 recommendations of the Child Death Review Committee’s report on the death of Jacqueline Brewer states that “The Family Services Act be amended to clearly provide that in cases of chronic neglect,  when there is a conflict between risk to the child and preservation of the family unit, that the best interest and safety of the child must prevail.”  History had demonstrated in other jurisdictions that when the burden of proof is shifted in this way, the real power ends up in the hands of social workers many of whom are under-trained and over-worked. As a result, many poor decisions are made and the goal of increasing the security of children is not met. A similar provincial re-vamping of the child welfare system in British Columbia last year led to a terrifying abuse of power by newly-trained social workers. LSN reported in February that social workers in Quensel, a small town in British Columbia, apprehended 71 children from their parents in just two months, sparking protests from the public and BC family court judge Robin Smith. Smith issued a public warning on CTV’s W5 news program in March, noting that in only five of the cases was the removal of the children justified.  Minister Breault told Canadian Press that she was committed to protecting children who are “at risk” in their family setting. Pro-family New Brunswickers want “risk” to be clearly and responsibly defined. The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child which was signed by Canada and which is popular in politically correct circles treats corporal punishment as an illegitimate tool of discipline. Anti-family forces have,  therefore, argued that children who are spanked by their parents are “at risk.”