You have summarized quite well in your submission the question that this committee must answer, namely whether the Criminal Code BAC should be lowered from 80 to 50,
I came in to the office Sunday to reread all of the evidence heard by the committee. I recalled that the majority of witnesses had argued that the most effective measure was the administrative license suspension. As you noted, all provinces, with the exception of Quebec, issue suspensions under these circumstances. I'm wondering if perhaps this is the recommendation that the committee should pursue.
We heard how enacting a new Criminal Code offence would likely tie up the criminal justice system which is already quite overrun. We were even quoted statistics on the number of cases that a Crown prosecutor had on his plate, compared to the number of cases pending for a defence counsel.
So then, I have two or three questions that I hope you can answer for me. Firstly, what are the repercussions of an administrative license suspension? Are there any repercussions, for example, from the standpoint of the Criminal Code?
Also, could you brief me on the status of the different highway safety codes in effect? Do these provincial codes merely have the status of provincial laws? Are provinces limited to issuing fines or do they have other options under the Criminal Code? I would appreciate some clarification of that issue.
Finally, has your department done any studies on the deterrent effect of license suspension? Witnesses have told us that license suspension is a far more effective measure because the imposition of the suspension is immediate and the repercussions are not deferred until a trial, which may not be held until a year or 18 months after the incident in question.