Mr. Chair, once again I'm seeking to incorporate into this piece of legislation the good advice that we received from the Canadian Bar Association.
This amendment would delete the first clause of the change in principles of sentencing because it's redundant. This is the deletion of the proposed changes to the sentencing principles that would denounce unlawful conduct and the harm done to victims or the community that is caused by unlawful conduct. The sentencing principles already list harms done to victims and to the community. This change would be redundant.
Furthermore, additional changes mentioning responsibility and victims are similarly redundant, since harms are already included. This change would arguably throw off other key considerations, such as proportionality, rehabilitation, and reintegration.
This was the tenor of the testimony to us by the Canadian Bar Association that is encapsulated in recommendation number five of their brief.