In 2004, the federal government announced that it would introduce legislation to permit the legalization of same-sex marriage in Canada. Federal Justice Minister Irwin Cotler initially indicated that civic officials would be allowed to opt out of performing same-sex marriages if the practice offended their beliefs. Doer criticized this, arguing that provincial employees should not be permitted to discriminate. Doer initially declined to express his personal views on the subject, but announced in late 2004 that he supported same-sex marriage as a human right.