Jay Hill

[Excise Tax Act, June 21st, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, I listened with great interest to my colleague's remarks. One area he could perhaps provide a bit more insight into is the moral responsibility of the tobacco companies and of the international companies that are going to reap the rewards of an increased level of smoking in our population.

I wonder if he has given any thought to how perhaps we could make the tobacco companies more accountable for the huge increases in our health care costs that are bound to come somewhere down the road so that they could pay their fair share since they are the ones reaping the rewards caused by this lowering of tobacco costs with the increase in the smoking population.

[Criminal Code And Young Offenders Act, June 21st, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, I also would like to note a change. The hon. member who is seconding my private members' bill is the hon. member for Skeena.

[Criminal Code And Young Offenders Act, June 21st, 1994]

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-265, an act to amend the Criminal Code and the Young Offenders Act (capital punishment).

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the hon. member for Skeena for co-sponsoring the bill.

The purpose of this bill is to amend the Criminal Code to impose capital punishment for everyone found guilty of committing first degree murder. Canadians have made it clear that they would like to see some fundamental changes to our criminal justice system and many people are calling for the reinstatement of the death penalty.

I do not know whether capital punishment is a deterrent but I do know that you cannot rehabilitate a violent murderer who has no remorse.

Canadians do not want criminals who are guilty of first degree murder back on their streets to kill again.

There is also a growing perception that our justice system is not dealing adequately with youth crime and many Canadians have called for stiffer penalties for young offenders. Currently young offenders convicted of first degree murder are subject to a maximum sentence of five years. The proposed changes to the Young Offenders Act under Bill C-37 increase the maximum sentence to ten years but still do not include a minimum sentence.

This bill would amend the Young Offenders Act to impose a minimum sentence of ten years on young offenders convicted of first degree murder.

I believe that the introduction of this bill is one way this fundamental issue of justice, of punishment that fits the crime, will be debated in this House. Yesterday the Minister of Justice made it clear that this government does not want to let the Canadian people vote on capital punishment in a binding national referendum at the next election.

I recommend that the government allow a free vote on this bill and encourage all members to actively seek the views of their constituents. This critical decision cannot be made merely along party policy lines or by consulting their own conscience without input from the people they purport to represent.

(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed.)

[Petitions, June 20th, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, the last two petitions are petitioning Parliament to make no changes to the law which would allow or sanction assisted suicide or passive or active euthanasia.

[Petitions, June 20th, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, the next two petitions request that Parliament not amend the human rights code, the Canadian Human Rights Act or the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms in any way which would tend to indicate societal approval of same sex relationships or to include sexual orientation explicitly in the prohibited grounds for discrimination.

[Petitions, June 20th, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36, I am presenting six petitions on three subjects on behalf of the constituents from Cecil Lake, Tumbler Ridge, Fort St. John, Dawson Creek and other communities in the Prince George-Peace River riding.

The first two petitions call upon the House of Commons to act to extend protection to unborn children by amending the Criminal Code.

[Gun Control, June 16th, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Justice. We have been told that law abiding firearms owners are the primary source of guns used in crime because their firearms can be stolen. Accurate information regarding the sources of guns for criminals is necessary to determine if further firearms controls will reduce gun related crime, yet the statistics are unavailable.

Will the minister undertake a comprehensive national study to determine the source of firearms for criminal activities and will he make the information readily available to all Canadians?

[Members Of Parliament Retiring Allowances Act, June 8th, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, I have a supplementary question.

Mid-July simply is not good enough. It has become public knowledge that the Leader of the Official Opposition, a man dedicated to the break-up of Canada, will become eligible for his pension on June 20.

Does the Deputy Prime Minister not agree that this alone constitutes a good enough reason to reform this extravagant MP pension plan?

[Members Of Parliament Retiring Allowances Act, June 8th, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Deputy Prime Minister.

Canadians have been constantly demanding that the government abolish the current MP pension plan which allows members to collect benefits after only six years of service.

The Prime Minister has stated that his government is reviewing this overly generous plan but that we have four or five years to deal with it.

We do not need a commission to tell us what needs to be done. We have already suggested changes that can be implemented immediately.

Will the Deputy Prime Minister commit to bringing the MPs' retirement compensation package in line with the private sector?

[Dangerous Offenders, June 7th, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the minister for his answer. I notice that once again we are hearing about reports and studies. The last thing Canadians want right now is another study into the causes of crime. This issue has been studied to death. People are demanding action from this minister.

With predators like Larry Fisher on the loose, how long does the minister plan to examine the alternatives he referred to in this House last week?