North Bay, Ont. and Montreal — Prime Minister Jean Chrétien is to make a passionate plea to Liberal MPs and to the country for support of his same-sex marriage bill in a speech before his caucus tonight, Liberal insiders say.

With the heat of opposition riding higher than anticipated, Mr. Chrétien is expected to outline why he has made an about-face since a 1999 vote endorsing the traditional, heterosexual-only definition of marriage, and ask MPs to back the expansion of marriage as a matter of human rights.

"He, like most of us last time, voted for a traditional definition of marriage. He'll explain his reasoning. He's a very passionate political person," said Joe Jordan, an Eastern Ontario MP and former parliamentary secretary to Mr. Chrétien.

One insider said last night that the Prime Minister will allude to the fact that his decision to support same-sex marriages has been difficult, given his Roman Catholic background. [nominal RC?]

The source said Mr. Chrétien will not preach to MPs, stressing that they will have a free vote, but he will underline that the issue is constitutional, not religious in nature.

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Tonight, the Prime Minister will not only attempt to sway his MPs, but will also speak through them to the country in a public speech, insiders said.

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Liberal caucus chair Stan Keyes said many MPs are irked not only by the government's move to legalize gay marriages, but also by the fact that it was launched after MPs broke for summer recess, without consultation with the caucus.