Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to be able to debate the second reading motion of Bill C-42. Bill C-42, an act to amend the Criminal Code and other acts (miscellaneous matters), is not to be confused with Bill C-40, the 1994 miscellaneous statute law amendment bill passed by the House on June 20. It was concerned with a variety of minor technical amendments to correct anomalies, inconsistencies and errors in federal statutes and to repeal provisions that have expired, lapsed or otherwise ceased to have effect.
That bill also made amendments of a minor, non-controversial and uncomplicated nature to a number of statutes. The bill we are concerned with today, which if passed this year will be known as the Criminal Law Amendment Act, 1994, focuses mainly on the Criminal Code but also contains some amendments to the Canada Evidence Act, the Contraventions Act, the Mutual Legal Assistance and Criminal Matters Act and the Supreme Court Act.
While some of the proposed amendments might be considered technical, many are more significant and will result in improvements to our criminal justice system. A bill such as this one is long overdue.
Historically this bill and ones like it were introduced on a regular basis. However the last such bill was introduced in 1985. The Minister of Justice intends to return to the previous pattern. He anticipates bringing forward a second bill of this nature once Parliament has dealt with this one.
The primary source for most of these amendments is the criminal law section of the Uniform Law Conference of Canada. The section is composed of delegates from each province, territory and the federal government and includes crown and defence lawyers. At annual meetings of the Uniform Law Conference, the section considers resolutions calling for amendments to the Criminal Code and other relevant statutes.
The other amendments in the bill originated from suggestions of the former Law Reform Commission of Canada, various judges, members of the bar, and federal and provincial departments and officials. These amendments, taken as a whole, represent significant changes to the criminal law aimed at increasing the efficiency of the justice system to the benefit of every Canadian.
When the Minister of Justice recently wrote provincial and territorial colleagues about the bill, he noted that each proposal fell within one or more of the categories said to be generally encompassed by the Uniform Law Conference resolutions.
In short, these seven categories cover proposals directed at, first, enhancing public confidence in our criminal justice system; second, making the Criminal Code provisions more efficient and more effective; third, implementing or achieving compliance with court decisions; fourth, filling perceived gaps in the Criminal Code; fifth, taking advantage of the advances in computer, communications and video technology; sixth, improving court procedures; and, seventh, ensuring greater fairness to the participants in the procedural process.
These categories illustrate laudable criminal law policy objectives and encompass the major themes of the bill. To date, the response we have received from the provinces to these proposals has been very positive.
I emphasize that the overall effect of these proposals will result in a more cost effective system of criminal justice while at the same time maintain or even improve the fundamental fairness of our justice.
The amendments to the Criminal Code are mostly procedural. Their cumulative effect will be to modernize procedure to make the Criminal Code more effective and more efficient. Procedural proposals range from permitting the Attorney General of Canada to take over private prosecutions for offences under federal legislation other than those under the Criminal Code, to proposals permitting the greater use of telephone, video technology and fax for certain procedural matters.
Under these amendments, authority would be given to permit judges to finish trials in progress on appointment to another court. When a judge has to be replaced during the trial for other reasons it would be possible for a new judge to carry on without having to start over again in appropriate cases of course.
These particular proposals should help in maintaining public confidence in our criminal justice system. They will also ensure greater fairness to participants, particularly the victims and the witnesses.
Other changes are aimed at making it easier for trial and appeal courts to establish rules of court. It will be easier to adjourn certain procedures when a judge is not available and it will be possible to arrange for a trial date upon committal after a preliminary hearing.
Changes to the Supreme Court Act would make it easier for the court to manage its workload and to remand cases to lower courts for further proceedings when that would be just in the circumstances.
Some proposals are directed at making improvements in the way in which some evidence issues are handled. For instance, several amendments would permit evidentiary proof by way of a certificate, thereby avoiding the need to require individuals to appear in person to testify. Other changes are directed at the manner in which evidence is to be obtained abroad and at ensuring that any such evidence is more readily admissible in Canadian proceedings.
Some amendments are aimed at increasing the use of technology, for instance permitting the use of a fax machine in limited circumstances. Another section would allow a person to appear by closed circuit television in some portions of a preliminary hearing.
A number of the proposals relate to arrest, pretrial release and other matters involving police practices and procedures. For instance, a significant improvement in the use of policing and court resources will be achieved by permitting police to release an arrested person on certain conditions restricting their liberty rather than as is now the case, having only the choice of releasing unconditionally or detaining an accused in custody until a hearing before the justice of the peace could be arranged.
Greater fairness to accused persons will be achieved through reducing unnecessary pretrial custody. Police will be able to spend more time on the beat preventing crime or detecting offenders rather than waiting in the corridors of courtrooms.
Perhaps the most significant changes which will contribute to a more effective and efficient criminal justice system are directed at trial procedures applicable to certain offences. The choice of trial procedure, summary conviction or indictable, would be given to the crown for the present indictable offences of assault causing bodily harm, unlawfully causing bodily harm and uttering threats to cause death or bodily harm.
The summary conviction maximum term of imprisonment for these offences as well as for the basic sexual assault offences would be 18 months instead of the normal six months for Criminal Code summary conviction offences.
This will relieve court congestion in the superior courts, reduce the strain on witnesses, particularly victims, and help contain the time needed to deal with many court cases to time periods required by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The changes will also send a strong signal to judges that significant punishment might be in order even for the minor instances of violent offences.
Similar benefits will be achieved by raising the monetary limit for theft and other property offences to $5,000 from $1,000. This is being done so that many more common offences related to property will be kept in the provincial court system, eliminating the need for preliminary hearings and jury trials for cases which rarely attract imprisonment.
There are proposals aimed at removing obsolete provisions or filling gaps created by changing circumstances. Gaps which presently exist with respect to publicity for certain pretrial proceedings would be closed.
It is important that the rights of accused persons to a fair trial before an impartial jury not be compromised by premature publicity of information which may or may not be relevant in admissible evidence.
The rights of witnesses and victims also require protection from the needless public disclosure of personal information. A prohibition would be created to ensure that sensitive material disclosed to the accused for the purposes of making a full answer in defence is not made public except for that purpose. This will serve to maintain the balance of interest between the right of the accused to a full answer in defence and the confidence that the public needs to encourage co-operation in criminal investigations and prosecutions.
The bill also seeks to enhance preventive measures already found in our law by proposing several changes aimed at making the peace bond process more effective. These changes will also ensure greater fairness to those participants in the criminal justice process who are in fear of threatened violence.
A peace bond is an undertaking given by a person on the order of a justice to be of good behaviour for a period of up to 12 months. It is a way of preventing a crime or, more important, the acts of violence constituting the crime from happening.
Their effectiveness will be improved by making violation of peace bonds punishable on indictment as well as on summary conviction, and by obliging justices to consider imposing specified conditions such as staying away from or prohibiting contact with the complainant. Police and others will also be able to apply for peace bonds on behalf of persons who are at risk of harm.
According to Statistics Canada's national survey on violence against women in 1993 three in ten women currently or previously married in Canada have experienced at least one incident of physical and sexual violence at the hands of a marital partner. Almost one-half or 45 per cent of wife assault cases resulted in physical injury to the woman. The survey also showed that one-third of women who were assaulted by a partner feared for their lives at some point during the abusive relationship.
It is also important to indicate that children witnessed violence against their mothers in almost 40 per cent of the marriages with violence. According to the same survey, the police were only informed of about 26 per cent of wife assault cases.
These figures show there is a large number of women who are victims of various forms of assault. These provisions are important tools in trying to cope with domestic violence and will help implement one of the red book commitments to work effectively in keeping abusers away from women and children.
We have to start thinking of using our criminal justice system to prevent crime from happening rather than, as is more often the case now, picking up the pieces which are all too often the shattered remnants of human tragedy.
It is clear that the bill covers a wide range of matters and I have only touched on a small number of the matters dealt with in the over 100 clauses the bill contains. Many of the provisions are quite technical and may not attract attention in the course of debate, but together with those already outlined they are all aimed at improving the administration of criminal justice in Canada and at enhancing the confidence the public must have in our criminal law.
Efficiency of operation combined with effectiveness of operation must be enhanced in our administration of justice. It is our job as legislators to seek ways to improve our administration so that even better service is given to the Canadian public.
I am confident all the members of this House will be satisfied with the common sense benefits this bill provides. This bill is long overdue. It contains provisions which should be put in place as soon as possible. I very much hope it can be treated in a non-partisan manner and that it will be considered by the committee carefully but quickly.