When the Canadian Parliament and this committee first replaced capital punishment with the life imprisonment regime, the data collected at that time and presented to this committee showed that, on average, most jurisdictions that had repealed capital punishment looked to minimum life sentences of 10 to 15 years. These are all constructs, in the sense that there's no magic to any of these numbers. The 25 years came from the recommendations of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police.
You asked if we would have longer parole ineligibility periods if we increased it to a maximum of 26, 27, or 30. Absolutely, but there's no magic to these numbers. I think last week everyone noticed that Clifford Olson was once again denied parole. The government appoints the National Parole Board, which makes their decisions based on risk.
In answer to your question, you could always change the numbers, but there's no magic to the numbers. Twenty-five years is a long time, but it's a life sentence. Twenty-five years is just for access to the board; the sentence is life.
I bump into guys in the pen who've been there well over 30 years. Some of them represent the human wreckage of our penitentiary system, and they won't get out, because they're a mess. The latest data say that, on average, people get out after 28 years. Our people serve long sentences.