Thank you, Mr. Chair.
My question is for Jody Berkes, of the Canadian Bar Association.
I quite agree that mandatory minimum penalties aren't really helpful to the courts in dealing with the cases before them, but I also think that what we do as lawmakers sends society a message. We pass laws, we amend laws and we repeal laws day in and day out. We have been doing that since the earliest days of Confederation, even since the beginning of time, and we probably always will. I believe that legislation should match the realities of society, that it should be appropriate and that it should be a tool that helps the people we represent.
Right now, some regions of Canada are experiencing a rise in violence. My fellow member talked about the opioid crisis earlier. He is right. I am seeing it in my region as well, not to mention an increase in gun violence. On the news, I heard mothers being interviewed, and they were saying that they were afraid to send their children to school because kids in some schools had guns. That's pretty worrisome. Members of the public reach out and ask us to do something. Efforts are made, special police units are created to tackle gun smuggling and so on. Now, we are being asked to do away with mandatory minimum sentences.
Mr. Berkes, I heard you say earlier that perhaps an exception should be made for murder. I'd like to know whether you think it's necessary to make distinctions. The idea of eliminating mandatory minimum penalties today, in 2022, has to fit the reality of 2022, not the reality of 1970 or the reality of 2060, whatever that might be. In 2022, the public is worried about gun violence.
Shouldn't we show some restraint and caution in eliminating mandatory minimum sentences?