Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you for being here.
Mr. Kroll, I addressed certain issues earlier with the Minister of Justice. Since you were present, I will not repeat what I already said at length.
I would like to come back to the question of judicial appointments. In his swearing‑in speech in 2023, the Chief Justice of the Federal Court, Justice Yves de Montigny, said that funding was inadequate. Also, in a decision Justice Henry Brown wrote last February, he stated that the current number of vacant positions on the Federal Court was unacceptable. The Chief Justice of Canada, the Right Honourable Richard Wagner, has twice said—I do not recall the exact dates, but it was a year or two ago—that the times it took to make appointments made no sense and were contributing to undermining public confidence in the justice system.
Has something been done in this regard? Does the budget provide for additional funds to create judge positions and provide new courtrooms and staff?
Better funding for the judicial system could also curtail the problem of proceedings being stayed as a result of the delays referred to in the Jordan decision. These stays cause considerable damage to the image of the justice system, and this could lead to a major crisis of confidence in our justice system among the public.
I would like to hear your views on that.