Edmonton Centre MP named special adviser on LGBTQ2 issues

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has named an Edmonton MP as his special adviser on LGBTQ2 issues.

Randy Boissonnault will work with advocacy groups to promote equality for lesbians, gays, bisexual, transgender, queer and two-spirited people a term used broadly to describe indigenous people who identify as LGBTQ.

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Boissonnault, who represents the Edmonton Centre riding, will also be tasked with addressing historical and current discrimination against LGBTQ2 people.

He will, however, stay on as parliamentary secretary to the minister of Canadian Heritage.

'We have made great strides'

The announcement comes as the Liberal government prepares to introduce legislation to repeal a Criminal Code provision on anal intercourse.

The law currently bans the sexual act, but there is an exception for heterosexual married couples and consenting adults of either sex over the age of 18.

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The government says the appointment is part of its broader efforts to ensure that all Canadians are treated equally and with respect.

"We have made great strides in securing legal rights for the LGBTQ2 community in Canada from enshrining equality rights in the Charter to the passage of the Civil Marriage Act," Trudeau said in a statement.

"But the fight to end discrimination is not over and a lot of hard work still needs to be done."