Mr. Chair, the point I was making is that statistics can be a guide; they can be a tool. But we have to be very careful that we base good policy...and it was a Liberal member who asked if we have a balance. I think it's a good question. When I've knocked on doors, when I've met families face to face, on the question of whether we have balance in Canada right now, the message I get loud and clear is that we do not have a balance.
Canadians want Canada to be safer. They demand it. The question that I've heard time and time again is, what does it cost? The member beside me, Mrs. Smith, asked that question: what does it cost families? You cannot put dollars and cents on what it costs a family and what it could cost a community to leave a high-risk offender in the community. I think that is a very important question, and it's a hard one to answer, but there is a price that communities want to have addressed. We want to have dangerous offenders incarcerated.
Mr. Chair, I support the plan and the mandate of the government, particularly on the age of consent. I served on the last justice committee, and we heard from a number of witnesses that our age of consent is one of the lowest in the world. Our children are being lured through the Internet. So I do support where we're going.
Mr. Chair, will the age of consent for sexual activity be the same as the age of responsibility for criminal activity, and if not, why not?