Thank you, Mr. Chair, and thank you, Mr. Minister, for your attendance here this afternoon.
I will ask a question that I believe is relevant and falls under your purview as the Minister of Justice. It's picking up on some questions that Mr. Lemay had with respect to early release. I'd like to ask this from the other aspect of this, and that is with respect to credit given for pre-trial custody.
A number of chiefs of police and several solicitor generals from the provinces have great concerns that judges are routinely giving two-for-one, and sometimes three-for-one time credit for individuals while they're awaiting ultimate disposition in remand centres. In fact, it's been suggested that some individuals in remand are deliberately delaying the process through pre-trial applications, adjournment applications, firing counsel, and delaying their ultimate trial. They deliberately drag out the system so they can get two-for-one and three-for-one credit for the time they spent in pre-trial custody.
My question is, has the Department of Justice had any studies on whether or not in fact this does occur and if it is a problem? If so, is it the priority of the government to perhaps deal with the discretion that the judges seem to be exercising with respect to two-for-one and three-for-one credits for pre-trial custody?