Good afternoon, Ms. Smith, Ms. Watts and Ms. Levman.
Allow me to introduce myself. I am Daniel Petit, the member for Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles in Quebec. I want you to know that not all Quebeckers oppose this bill. I have read it. I have been a lawyer for some 30 years. I have four children, who are all of full age, of course.
The issue you are raising has been a problem for a very long time, not only in Quebec and in Canada, but also worldwide. The trafficking of young girls and boys has been the focus of numerous movies and news stories. I can assure you that Quebeckers in the Conservative party support your bill.
We have had the chance to meet, as we sit on the same side of the House. I have followed your motion's progress. Way back when, you proposed a motion, and, if memory serves me correctly, we voted almost unanimously in favour of it.
The question I want to ask Ms. Levman is this. Very often, the general public does not distinguish between procuring and the trafficking of children for sexual or other purposes. In the Criminal Code, it says that if someone is found guilty of procuring, the minimum sentence is two years' imprisonment, and up to five years in the case of a more serious offence. We are talking about prostitution and procuring.
I read Ms. Mourani's book; she is a Bloc Québécois member who, in fact, voted in our favour. In her book, she writes that certain highly organized street gangs in Montreal sell one another young women, whom they then use. As one city of Montreal official told us during a presentation on human trafficking in the Montreal area, it is more profitable for a gang to have girls than drugs, because they have to buy more drugs once they sell the drugs they had, but a girl can be used over and over again, which brings in more money.
Ms. Levman, since people are watching us now, could you please explain the difference between section 212 and the new section that Ms. Smith is proposing with respect to minimum sentences for procuring and trafficking offences. Most people think that procuring is human trafficking. But they are not necessarily the same thing. Can you explain the difference from a legal perspective?