Well, you've covered quite a bit of ground there, Mr. Murphy. I can tell you that both the Minister of Health and the Minister of Public Safety are in full support of and are completely aware of all the provisions of this bill, just like the members of my caucus, who have encouraged us to come forward with this legislation and have encouraged us to bring forward legislation in this area. It has their complete support, so you can be assured of that.
You talked a bit about the drug treatment courts. I'm very supportive of the drug treatment courts. They provide an opportunity for someone to break the cycle and get out of the business, or the unfortunate situation, of being caught with drugs, or taking drugs, or having an addiction. I like the idea that they are given the opportunity, if they are prepared to complete a prescribed drug treatment program, to come back to court and have the charges withdrawn against them. It's a very serious business to have a criminal conviction against you, so I can understand why this would be a huge incentive for some people to try to break the cycle of addiction and dependence and do something about where they are with their lives.
I'm careful when I describe them. We are not talking about the serious drug traffickers, the people who are basically out to destroy our society. This is not who we are talking about. There are a number of criteria--I think I mentioned a couple of them--where there are no other aggravating factors and where they are prepared, of course, and it's always up to them, to go through the treatment. I think this is a great alternative.
We have to move on this. I've had discussions with people not just in Canada but outside of Canada. Drugs and trafficking in drugs are a scourge, and we have to do what we can. We have to send out the message. I am particularly pleased with, for instance, the importing provisions. They tell me the people who are importing drugs are not the persons we're talking about who get involved with the drug treatment courts. This is organized crime. These are the real gangsters who are bringing drugs into this country. I want to send out a very clear message to them that if you get into this business, you can expect jail time under this particular bill. I think that's exactly the message we have to send out.
On the one hand, we want to help addicts. We don't want people to get involved with drug addiction; we want to help them get out of that. For the people who are in the business of trafficking, or selling to children, or using violence, bringing these things into this country or destroying neighbourhoods, the message to them is very clear: you can expect serious consequences under this new bill.