Mr. Chairman, this is an amendment that, again, is based on the same logic—in other words, turning the offences relating to Schedules 1 and 2 into aggravating factors. I would remind you that such a provision already exists in our Criminal Code. This would create an obligation, not to impose a minimum sentence, but rather, to consider, for the purposes of sentencing, any aggravating or negative factors that would warrant social reprobation.
With your permission, Mr. Chairman, I would like to put a question to Mr. Saint-Denis. On a number of occasions, the Committee has looked at the relevance of the deterrent effect of minimum sentences. If I challenged you to bring forward some departmental studies in that regard, would you be in a position to provide studies that would reassure us as to whether minimum sentences really act as a deterrent? If they do not, do you not find that rather sad and believe that we would be demonstrating negligence in not acting on this—negligence that would ultimately be tantamount to ideological bias, which is certainly not something you would want to aid and abet?