Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Minister, the issue of inciting minors to commit a crime is something we in the Bloc Québécois are very concerned about. I had actually worked on a bill to address that. Our approach may have been a bit tougher than what you're proposing in Bill C‑16. When a person incites a minor to commit a crime on their behalf, I think it might be one of the most serious crimes out there. It's cowardly, it's criminal and, in addition to the harm caused by the crime, it potentially creates a new criminal who will continue down that path. It's completely unacceptable and it's a major problem that needs to be dealt with.
I had come up with a specific penalty for those cases. For example, if someone incites a minor to rob a bank, and it is obviously proven, they would automatically be convicted and receive double the sentence they would have had they committed the crime themselves. I thought that was an effective way of tackling the problem. I believe you are proposing a sentence of five years in those cases. It's better than nothing, of course. I'm not saying it's a bad idea, but I do find it a bit timid, as I said earlier.
Don't you think it's necessary to go further and crack down harder on this scourge: adults—often members of organized crime—who make minors commit crimes?