Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Minister, I do not feel that you have fulfilled the task of convincing us to support your bill. It is far too easy for you to come before this committee, refer to six random cases and to say that at the end of the day, the judiciary didn't do a good job.
I have a specific question for you and I would appreciate a specific response. When we met with your officials, they informed us of the fact that for the year 2003-2004, the last year for which figures are available, 15,493 people had received conditional sentences. According to your department's data, how many people received conditional sentences for violent crimes? That is the real burden of proof you must discharge. You cannot simply use two or three examples from case law.
When Bill C-41 was passed, the goal was to free up prison space to make sure that real criminals, in other words those who commit violent crimes, would be behind bars. On the list of offences for which people would no longer be able to receive conditional sentences — our research service provided us with a list of a hundred — some do not involve any violence at all. Obviously, each case must be assessed on its merits, granted. However, I would expect you to be more rigorous when it comes to the figures you are providing for us.
I hope that within the Department of Justice there is some kind of system which allows you to know how many people out of these 15,493 committed violent crimes and received conditional sentences.
That is my first question. I have three others and so I would appreciate short replies.