Welcome, Minister, to the committee.
I hope we have an opportunity to discuss the crime rate with you in the coming days, in particular the violent crime rate. We get the distinct impression on listening to you speak that you are disconnected from the statistics that we have had an opportunity to review here in committee.
All crime indicators, particularly violent crime indicators, are on the decline. However, that's not what I wanted to talk to you about.
The draft legislation that you are planning to introduce has raised some concerns, particularly the detention provisions for sentences of less than two years. The cost of this detention will have to be assumed by the provinces. Perhaps I may have misinterpreted various budget items, but frankly, I got the impression that the provinces would not be receiving any additional funding, if they eventually had to take up the slack, further to changes to sentencing provisions. When the committee met with departmental officials to discuss Bills C-9 and C-10, we were told that one third of people may no longer be eligible for a conditional sentence.
Have you planned to give the provinces any kind of financial break?