Thank you, Mr. Chair.
And thanks to our guests.
As the chair alluded to, I'm filling in today.
I'm very interested in whenever we can provide additional tools and resources for our protective services to keep our communities and streets safe, and also to provide a more efficient and safer Witness Protection Program Act. I think this is a very common-sense, streamlined, integrated approach, so I commend the committee and all the witnesses who have brought this recommendation forward today.
I was just reflecting on some of the back information and my own experience. I had an opportunity to go to a chiefs of police conference that was held in my riding. I have a friend who's a senior member of the municipal police and other police officers. One person I met was Toronto Chief Bill Blair, and he indicated that there is a lot of “fear caused by intimidation and the threat of retaliation in gang investigations”. Of course, it's a statistic that continues to grow. Organized crime in my community, in Kelowna, British Columbia, is a serious issue, and across the nation.
This is reinforced by Mr. Blair's comments. He said:
In Toronto, we have seen the fear caused by intimidation and the threat of retaliation in gang investigations. Witnesses with valuable information are deterred from coming forward. We support the government’s initiative as a valuable step in protecting public safety.
I just want to know if you could—whoever, all of you might have some comments—describe how you feel these changes to the witness protection program will encourage witnesses with information to come forward.
Thank you.