Last Saturday, with Minister MacKay, I met with Quebec police officers. They told us that their mission was very difficult, given the harsh conditions people live in, but that they were well received. Bernard talked about this phenomenon earlier on. We asked them if they were afraid, and they said no.
They did not talk so much about corruption in the police force as they did the problem with impunity. They told us that members of the national police force who are honest will arrest an individual whom they catch red-handed. The individual will then appear before the judge. The judge gives one sentence if it's one offence, and another sentence if it's another offence. The following Monday, he's free. That is discouraging for the national police.
I had a long talk with the police director, Mr. Andresol. He said himself that at least 20% of police officers were corrupt and that the situation had to be cleaned up. But it's not simple. It is a situation where people's friends might come into play. The necessary political will has to be there to clean all of that up.