Good afternoon, Mr. Chair, honourable members. Thank you for the opportunity to speak to you today.
Many of you will know that the CACP appears before your committee and before the Senate on a wide range of bills. In fact, members of our association have appeared before this committee on several of the bills that now find themselves part of Bill C-2.
Before we comment on Bill C-2, we would reiterate a general comment that we have made before you on a previous occasion with respect to the complexity of criminal law and the public's general faith in the justice system. As with many aspects of the Criminal Code, the CACP believes quick fixes and band-aids are no longer sufficient.
We offer two quick points. First, we believe criminal law, including the law of sentencing, is in need of a sustained and comprehensive overhaul if the criminal justice system is to regain the eroding confidence of the public. Second, we believe much more could be done to give police the tools they need to detect and apprehend violent offenders. I will elaborate in a few moments.
As you know, the short title of Bill C-2 is the Tackling Violent Crime Act. We at the CACP join Parliament in saying that we must put an end to the violent crime we are seeing in our communities.
Before appearing here today, I had occasion to speak to my colleagues at the Vancouver police department, who are struggling with a wave of gun violence in their city. They, like all of us in the policing community, recognize that no one piece of legislation is going to solve what is a complex social problem underlying gang activity and the culture of violence it instills in our young people. A comprehensive, nationally focused, and locally resourced strategy is required. Much is being done, but much more can be done.
In terms of Bill C-2, the CACP supports the bill as one step of an overall crime reduction strategy. We believe Canadians are very concerned with the areas addressed in the bill. Gun violence, drugs, and the exploitation of our children rate high on the public's list of public safety concerns for very good reason.
We are also pleased to see Parliament help the courts keep those persons who pose a danger to our society in jail and away from the public. Examples of offenders reoffending while on judicial interim release, or escaping justice by fleeing to other jurisdictions in Canada, go far to erode the public's confidence and faith in the ability of the criminal justice system to protect them.
My colleague and I will be pleased to answer specific questions on Bill C-2, but before we do, permit us to elaborate on what we mean when we say that it is but one step in an overall strategy.
The CACP has several legislative priorities, and has, as one example, for some years now been advocating for modern tools to deal with modern crimes. Bill C-2 is directed in part to three important dangers to society: guns and gangs, child exploitation, and drugs. Your police struggle every day to stop the violence, disrupt the gangs, apprehend child sexual predators, and interdict drug dealers. These investigations are often made more difficult by the offender's success at exploiting the new technologies, such as digital communications and the Internet, to further their interests.
The CACP has been asking and pleading with government to modernize our investigative abilities for many years in this area, under the auspices of the lawful access initiative. As you know, the previous government introduced the Modernization of Investigative Techniques Act, which did not get passed before Parliament dissolved. We were pleased to see a private member's bill come forth reintroducing MITA and take that as a sign that all parliamentarians are concerned, as we are, with the eroding interception capabilities of your police.
With due respect to all, the time has come—it is past due—for action on this front. We ask you to act decisively on this matter, and act soon.
You need not be reminded, I'm sure, that it is your police who must find their way through an increasingly complex society using only those tools you allow them to keep the streets safe. For our part, the CACP will continue to offer you the voice of Canadian police leadership as you move forward with your work on this bill and hopefully the many others to come.
Thank you for the opportunity.