Tuesday, October 22, 2002

A story released today by the Canadian Press reports that the latest census numbers from Statistics Canada suggests that the term "traditional" no longer describes the universal ideal for family in Canada. Households consisting of four or more people - typically mom, dad and their two kids - accounted for only a quarter of all Canadian households in 2001. Two decades earlier, they accounted for a third.

At the same time, the number of households is rising - to almost 11.6 million, a 6.9 percent increase from 1996. The increase in smaller households was the biggest single contributor to the growth.

Statistics Canada says there are several known factors behind the changing numbers - fertility rates are lower, couples are delaying having children and more just aren't having children at all.

In addition, Canadians are living longer so couples have more of their lives to spend together as empty-nesters after raising their children. And marital or common-law breakups often create two smaller households.

In 2001, more than a million children, or about 19 percent, did not live with two parents. Most of those lived with one parent, usually lone mothers.

"The 2001 census showed that there's a continuation in the decline of what used to be called the traditional family - mom, dad and the kids," said Pierre Turcotte, a Statistics Canada analyst.

More Canadians are living alone or living together and not marrying.

More are not having kids. Still others are not marrying but having kids.

People like Lianne Thompson are no longer content to wait for Prince Charming to show up, sweep them off their feet and ride with them into a sunset promising two kids and a house in the suburbs.

She's the embodiment of what the 2001 census paints as the changing Canadian family.

In her mid-30s at the time, the corporate services manager decided three years ago to become a single parent.

"More recently, at least for single women, a lot of us feel that we're not going to get married just for the sake of getting married," she said.

For the first time, Statistics Canada collected census data on same-sex partnerships, primarily because of their changing legal status. New federal legislation two years ago required same-sex partners to receive the same benefits as heterosexual couples

A total of 34,200 same-sex, common-law couples were counted in the 2001 census, representing 0.5 per cent of all Canadian couples and three percent of all common-law couples. Most lived in urban areas.

The proportion of same-sex couples was highest in Quebec and British Columbia, each standing at 0.6 percent of all couples. Ontario had the largest number of same-sex couples - 12,505, or 0.5. percent of couples. Newfoundland had the lowest proportion, at 0.1 percent.

But Diane Watts of Real Women of Canada contends that, whatever the numbers suggest, Canadians still cherish the family above all else.

She attributes the shifts more to economics than values.

"We have to view the whole picture," said Watts. "The fact is, we can't conclude from statistics that Canadians aren't interested in family life."

Tuesday's release was the third installment of the latest census data, collected in May 2001.

In the first, the agency reported that Canada's population continues to migrate to urban centers, and that its main source of population growth is immigration.

In a second release, Statistics Canada reported that an aging population bulge known as the boom generation will soon be facing retirement, posing questions for Canada's social services, pension funds and job market.

The next release on Dec. 10 deals with language, with Statistics Canada providing snapshots of immigration on Jan. 21, the labor force on Feb. 11 and education and religion on March 11 and May 13 respectively.

To view census please go to : http://www12.statcan.ca/english/census01/release/index.cfm