Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
I'll be speaking in support of the amendment. I had the pleasure and honour of being Professor Kaiser's student back in 1985 and 1986, but I hope you will hold his opinion in no less regard because of that.
We share the concern with respect to mandatory minimums. We are of the firm belief—and I think the evidence bears this out—that mandatory minimums do not serve as deterrents to criminals, nor effective remedies to crime. They remove judicial discretion, often disproportionate to the crime committed. They also remove transparency by encouraging perpetrators to plead guilty to lesser offences.
In the case of mischief relating to war memorials, the use of plea bargains or pleading guilty of a lesser offence would be particularly detrimental, as the public would not be aware that a war memorial had been damaged or desecrated by an individual who had pleaded guilty to a lesser offence. This in turn would remove opportunities for educational campaigns and other alternative remedies that might better serve the community by increasing awareness of the sacrifices made by Canada's war veterans.
For those reasons we'll be supporting the amendment.
Thank you, Mr. Chair.