Bill C-221

An Act to amend the Corrections and Conditional Release Act (disclosure of information to victims)

Sponsor

Introduced as a private member’s bill. (These don’t often become law.)

Status

Outside the Order of Precedence (a private member's bill that hasn't yet won the draw that determines which private member's bills can be debated), as of Sept. 17, 2025

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Summary

This is from the published bill.

This enactment amends the Corrections and Conditional Release Act to provide that information that is disclosed to the victim of an offence regarding eligibility dates and review dates applicable to the offender in respect of temporary absences, releases or parole must include an explanation of how the dates were determined.

Elsewhere

All sorts of information on this bill is available at LEGISinfo, an excellent resource from Parliament. You can also read the full text of the bill.

Bill numbers are reused for different bills each new session. Perhaps you were looking for one of these other C-221s:

C-221 (2021) An Act to amend certain Acts in relation to survivor pension benefits

C-221 (2020) Environmental Restoration Incentive Act

C-221 (2016) Safe and Regulated Sports Betting Act

1^st reading

Corrections and Conditional Release ActRoutine Proceedings

September 17th, 2025 / 4:45 p.m.

Conservative

Mel Arnold Conservative Kamloops—Shuswap—Central Rockies, BC

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-221, An Act to amend the Corrections and Conditional Release Act (disclosure of information to victims).

Mr. Speaker, I want to start by thanking my colleague from Oshawa for seconding this bill, an act to amend the Corrections and Conditional Release Act. The hon. member worked on it in the last Parliament when she worked with her predecessor, the former member for Oshawa, Dr. Colin Carrie, who retired after 21 years of distinguished service that included moving an identical bill to a very advanced stage with unanimous support before the last Parliament was dissolved.

This bill is relatively short, but it is meaningful in that it would make a much-needed difference in the lives and experiences of victims of crime. The proposals of this bill were inspired by Ms. Lisa Freeman, whose father was brutally murdered in 1991. Ms. Freeman's experience has compelled her to be an incredible advocate for victims' rights, and I thank her for her incredible perseverance and bravery in dealing with government systems and processes that can be unfriendly to victims of crime and must be reformed.

This bill seeks to provide victims of crime with timely and accurate information upon sentencing and prior to the potential release of an offender, to avoid ambiguity and false comfort of parole eligibility dates that can be misleading. This bill also proposes that victims of crime be provided an explanation of how dates related to parole are determined. The bill's proposals would also ensure that victims and their families are provided timely and accurate information concerning the movements of an individual within the prison system and would prevent the arbitrary denial of victims' participation at parole hearings.

As I mentioned, this bill was on track to achieving royal assent when the last Parliament was dissolved, and it deserves to be passed in this Parliament. I look forward to working with all parliamentarians to move this bill to completion.

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