Thank you, Chair.
Thank you, Minister, for appearing today on this important study.
People may wonder why we're having this study today. It was because of a Supreme Court decision, the Brown ruling, that frankly put Canadians, particularly women, at risk. I know that MP Vecchio and MP Brock—who serves on this committee—along with MP Caputo and I wrote a letter to you urging that you act quickly and offering any assistance we could give to close what was, I feel, a very serious condition in our Criminal Code and a serious gap created by the decision.
There will be a lot of questions today about the bill. I want to ask a broader question, though. Your government does respond to things when they see fit. For example, when there was a vacancy for the ombudsman for prisoners, it was filled the next day. When there was a vacancy for the ombudsman of victims of crime, it took a full year to fill that important position. I would like to have had the benefit of hearing from the ombudsman of victims of crime in the process around Bill C-5, around this and around other criminal justice legislation.
We've just completed a study in which we heard witness testimony on victims of crime. One of the most high-profile cases in Canada in recent memory was that of Sharlene Bosma, whose husband, Tim, was killed. It captured the attention of all Canadians. The individual who took his life was also convicted of killing his own father and his ex-girlfriend. Thanks to legislation that was put in place to allow for consecutive periods of parole ineligibility, he received a parole ineligibility period of 75 years.
However, as a result of the Supreme Court decision in Bissonnette, this individual will be eligible for parole after 25 years. The clock started ticking on that, I think, almost a decade ago. When Sharlene Bosma was here, she said the one bit of light that she hung on to in the whole situation was knowing that thanks to what she and the Crown prosecutor and other witnesses did, her daughter would never have to go to parole hearings. We heard over and over how parole hearings revictimize victims and their families.
Minister, you responded, and we co-operated with you to get swift passage of Bill C-28. This hearing is part of that, to see if there are ways it can be improved.
My question is this: Will you and will your government respond to the Supreme Court decision in Bissonnette?