Thank you for the question.
I don't think this is going to solve all the problems. I think it's going to be helpful, and all the witnesses that we heard in the Senate and from the public and other stakeholders have indicated that they're very optimistic that this is going to help in terms of consistency in sentencing.
We've had cases or instances.... One was in Ottawa earlier this year, where the judge turned down the recommendation of even the defence counsel, who was asking for a year in that particular assault, and handed out a sentence of six months. The crown was asking for 18 months, the defence for a year, and the judge went for six months, specifically saying that this is not an aggravating factor under the code.
With respect to the general sentencing provisions of section 718, this issue was not something that was on my radar until there was an assault in Ottawa. I gave a member's statement in the Senate based on my concern over the very modest sentence indeed of an individual who had a very long criminal record involving serious assaults and did not serve one day in jail.
I gave a statement and then was contacted by the transit community and asked if I would consider introducing legislation in the Senate. I didn't immediately accept. I did consult with a wide range of people, including a former crown attorney, a former chief of police, and a number of active police officers and some defence counsel as well. That's where this recommendation came from; in their minds this was the way to proceed.
I talked about focusing tightly on the safety of the broader public and dealing specifically with crimes that occur when the bus is typically in motion. I was advised that that was the preferable way to deal with it.