moved:
Motion No. 2
That bill C-78, in Clause 16, be amended by adding after line 17, on page 8, the following:
"(3) Every report prepared under subsection (1) shall, after it is laid before each House of Parliament under subsection (2), be referred to the committee of Parliament that normally considers matters relating to justice and legal affairs.
(4) Every report prepared under subsection (1) shall include, without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the following information: a ) the number of agreements entered into and the law enforcement agencies involved; b ) the number of applications made; c ) the average amount spent on each agreement entered into; d ) the number of agreements terminated and the reasons for their termination; e ) the number and types of offences committed by protectees; f ) the total amount of all money from the Consolidated Revenue Fund spent in relation to the operation of this Act; g ) co-operative measures between the Force and other law enforcement agencies with respect to witness protection; and h ) the number of foreign witnesses admitted to Canada and the number of Canadian witnesses relocated outside Canada.''
Mr. Speaker, it never ceases to amaze me how little the government side knows about what is happening in the world of crime. In spite of the fact that we see all these documents and newspaper clippings and initiatives which have been started by the government, it never seems to want to really address the problem.
One of the headings in a newspaper not too long ago was: "Guns replace cigarette smuggling". Who does the smuggling? Who smuggles guns, cigarettes, booze, and the like? No one but an organized criminal group. They are in it to make money.
As I mentioned before, several Reform MPs, and I know Liberal members went to the same area, went to the Akwesasne reserve and the city of Cornwall. It is interesting to note that the police task force initiated to combat smuggling is afraid to patrol the river in the evening for fear of being shot at by organized criminals who have literally taken over control of the river to move their contraband. That takes place mostly during the evening and the night. They are organized criminals who need special treatment. When we talk about protecting witnesses, witnesses from this area are afraid to come forward for fear of reprisal. They know the police cannot protect them adequately.
This is happening right across the country. Ipperwash is another place. The police are reluctant to properly police the area of Bosanquet and Ipperwash because it may end up having a confrontation with an organized criminal group. We can have all the witness protection programs we want, but if there are not adequate funds to deal with it, it is another matter. We will not be protecting witnesses.
That is happening in the country, not just in Ipperwash and not just in Cornwall. We can look at other areas including metropolitan areas such as Toronto and Vancouver. Organized criminal groups have control in many areas, whether or not we want to admit it. It will take extraordinary means to combat it. Power is given to the police including under the witness protection act as mentioned here. Funds must be available to take care of it, if the government is serious about it. I do not believe the Liberal government is serious about fighting crime at all. It would do something more about it if that were the case.
People are living in fear in their own homes. This is what combating crime the Liberal way has done. They have to bar themselves in their own homes to protect themselves from criminals who have control of the streets. That is not the way to fight crime. When it is in an organized fashion even this legislation falls short because many police departments have their hands tied.
My second amendment deals with the submission of the annual report on the operation of the program as it applies to the preceding year. There are enabling sections in the legislation to have the report placed before Parliament. However we are without any provision for having the report sent before the Standing Committee on Justice and Legal Affairs to be reviewed. It does not mention the content of what the report should include. I believe the report is ridiculous. If there is a budget of $3.4 million as the government has so slated, there should be some content in the report and some subsection to specify precisely how the money is to be spent.
Many times members have stood on both sides of the House and talked about accountability. It is a nice word, but it seems as though a regulation has to be in place before somebody actually becomes accountable. Members on that side who were in opposition years before railed time and time against the government of the day on accountability and responsibility. All this amendment is suggesting is that there made more accountability.