Thank you, Mr. Chair. Like my colleague, I am happy to be able to finally participate in this clause-by-clause review.
I'm going to focus my comments this afternoon—I guess we're into this evening now—on NDP amendment number four, which, as Mr. Harris was saying, is how they want to remove schedule II from that clause. I want to put it into context, because I don't think people who may be watching or listening necessarily understand what this clause deals with and what it talks about.
Section 5 of the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act deals with trafficking. Subsection 5(1) starts out by saying, “No persons shall traffic in a substance included in Schedule I, II, III or IV”. So when they're seeking to amend that section, they're trying to take out schedule II from trafficking. Schedule II, if we look through it, deals with marijuana and marijuana derivatives.
What the NDP are proposing to say is that there should not be mandatory minimum penalties for people who are trafficking in marijuana. I think everyone should understand that, because in my estimation that is an extreme position.
I'm going to go through a few things to explain why I believe that is such an extreme and unsupportable position.
I'll start with a quote that we have right here. This is from Chief Superintendent Fraser McRae from the RCMP Operational Intelligence Centre in Surrey, where he states “...what can't be debated is that cannabis is a currency for organized crime.”
So organized crime traffics in marijuana and the NDP is saying that we should remove that so there's not a mandatory minimum penalty.
I've noticed that only today on the news we hear of a large drug bust that was going on in Quebec that dealt with the Hells Angels, and of course they seized large amounts of marijuana. Again, simply to reiterate, the trafficking of marijuana is the lifeblood of organized crime, so when we are including that in this legislation it's to target things like that, trafficking in marijuana.
What we also know is that the argument that is being put forth on the other side is that somehow this legislation is a little too difficult. What about the poor person who is only growing six, seven, or eight plants in their basement? They might be affected by this legislation.
In my discussions with police officers, and in a little research I've done, a marijuana plant can produce between 500 and 1,000 joints, depending on how large it grows. So if you're looking at someone who has six plants of marijuana, this is a person who could be producing 6,000 joints. This is not the poor misguided person who wants to have some personal use. This is somebody who is growing marijuana for the purpose of trafficking. That's exactly why this section needs to stay in the legislation.
When we talk about some of the comments that I just heard from Madame Boivin, saying that this legislation does not do anything to support victims, that is strange to me, because as I sat on this committee I watched victim group after victim group come forward and stand here and say strongly, “We need this legislation. We want this legislation.” The reason why they talk about it is because—and my colleague commented on this—this legislation changes so many sections of the Criminal Code to give a sentence that fits the crime, and it restores faith in the justice system.
I've spoken to many people who have gone through the justice system, and they say over and over again that not only were they victimized by the perpetrator of the crime, but they were victimized by the justice system when they watched the person who committed the crime receive a sentence that was absolutely not proportionate to the crime they committed. Those are the kinds of people we are standing up for, and that's why we are introducing this legislation. Victims support this legislation. That is clear from the testimony we've heard at this committee.
When we talk about the issue of deterrence...we heard from the chiefs of police. They came and sat here and talked to this committee. They said this legislation is going to stop the revolving door of what they called “rounders”, people who are going through the system over and over again with no perceived consequences to their actions. They don't see that the current legislation is any impediment to their committing the crime, so they feel free to continue to do that.
This is going to give our police officers the tools to get those people off the street and keep them off the street for a longer period of time, which means they won't have the ability to continue to traffic drugs to our families and to our children.
I have a quote here from Dr. Darryl Plecas, Royal Canadian Mounted Police research chair and director of the Centre for Criminal Justice Research at the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice in the University of the Fraser Valley:
We absolutely have to get people off the street. It's not a question of getting tougher on sentencing, it's a question of getting more effective. We want to make a difference. We know we can. We've seen it happen. Let's do more.
I absolutely applaud the government on the initiatives to get mandatory penalties.
These are the kinds of people who are supporting our legislation.
Don Spicer, superintendent of the Halifax Regional Police, stated:
We believe that Bill S-10 will have a positive effect in aiding Halifax Regional Police to decrease acts of illegal drug activity and the corresponding acts of violence in our community. As such, we view Bill S-10 as an important step in the right direction.
So here on this side, the government side, we've heard from law enforcement. We've heard from victims. They support this legislation. Those are the people we're happy to have supporting this legislation.
We've heard comments today from members of the opposite side of the committee that we're bundling this together, that we're rushing this through. It's absolutely not true. I want to put on the record just a few pieces of information.
As of today, for this specific piece of legislation, there have been four days of debate in the House of Commons, with 16 hours of debate and 53 speeches; nine days in committee, with 16 hours in committee, 68 witnesses, and appearances by two ministers.
When we look at the predecessor legislation that was introduced in this House, which is part and parcel of this legislation, we have an even more impressive record of debate and discussion. We had 33 days of debate in the House, with 81 hours of debate, 225 speeches, and 45 days in committee, with 78 hours in committee, 252 witness appearances, and six ministerial appearances.
It continued in the Senate: 20 days of debate, with 14 hours of debate and 36 speeches; 22 days in committee, with 61 hours in committee, 111 witness appearances, and three ministerial appearances.
I don't need to add those numbers up. People can do that. But anyone trying to suggest that this legislation has not been properly reviewed or properly studied is trying to sell something that is absolutely not saleable.
I hope that when my friends on the other side consider this legislation, they'll realize the necessity, get on the sides of police officers, police chiefs, and victims groups, and support this legislation.
Thank you.