Madam Speaker, before I get into the specifics of the bill I would like to take a minute to talk about my colleague, the member for Cambridge.
Many of you who sat in the previous Parliament or two Parliaments ago would remember that the member for Cambridge, Mr. Chris Speyer, Conservative member of Parliament, devoted most of his time to issues related to securing safety in the streets and law and order in this country. In fact he distinguished himself in this House working on such issues and later he was appointed to the Federal Court of Canada.
Our colleague, when he was elected in the last election, had a tremendous challenge in front of him, quite frankly, to fill those shoes. It is obvious that in less than two years he has already, on behalf of the community of Cambridge, filled those shoes and gone beyond. I think that today's bill is not only representative of the feelings and views a lot of his own community has, but it is also a representation of what I know most of the people in my community in downtown Toronto feel. It is a bill that my community would want supported.
I salute my colleague from Cambridge for a tremendous effort in bringing this private member's bill before the House.
It is great to see that the Reform Party members are getting behind this bill. It is very rare that a member can bring to the House of Commons a bill and achieve such all-party consensus. That is a great achievement for a member of Parliament in his first term.
Bill C-316 has a personal appeal to me because the parents and a lot of the relatives of Georgina Leimonis lived in my riding. In my downtown Toronto riding there are more members of the Greek community than any other community outside of Athens. Our community was deeply disturbed by the tragic death of Georgina. This is a very specific example of why this bill must be passed, must go to committee, must be properly amended and made the law of the land.
Bill C-316 enables the court, in addition to any other sentence, to order the removal of a non-citizen convicted of an offence punishable by 10 or more years. It accelerates the deportation process and would save Canadian taxpayers money, because two separate hearings, immigration and sentencing, would not be needed. This bill does not apply to anyone who arrived in Canada prior to 16 years of age.
Today in our correctional service system, our prisons, there are non-citizens who are using this defect in our current law, and it is costing the taxpayers of Canada close to $50 million a year. Conceivably, for the same group who are in our prisons today, that same group, without any increase, over the term of a government we would be talking $250 million.
When the fiscal framework of this country is in such tough condition and we are all trying to the best of our ability to be frugal and to cut and eliminate waste and duplication, it seems to me that alongside the basic justice in the bill there is also an economic factor that has to be looked at.
If we did not support this bill it is not inconceivable that within two or three years it could cost the taxpayers of Canada $150 million a year to look after non-Canadians who have criminal offences as part of their record and who are abusing our laws. I believe this is another factor in the equation.
Another thing I believe we must understand is that the member for Cambridge did not just listen to his own community and members here; he went to other organizations. I want to quote specifically from a letter he received from Victims of Violence, the Canadian Centre for Missing Children: "Mr. Peric's bill focuses on those immigrants who have committed serious criminal offences, sometimes violent. His bill distinguishes the criminals from the
overwhelming majority of law-abiding immigrants. Those convicted of offences punishable by 10 years or more should be deported from Canada as quickly as possible. Victims of Violence would like to congratulate Mr. Peric on his efforts. On behalf of the Canadian public and the many crime victims we serve throughout Canada, we would like to thank him."
CAVEAT has written a similar endorsement. The Canadian Police Association has written to support the bill of the member for Cambridge.
I urge all members to look into the bill. We have a unique opportunity to get behind it in committee. As the member for Surrey-White Rock-South Langley, the immigration critic for the Reform Party, stated earlier, the bill has some flaws that can be amended in committee. However the overall thrust or the overall approach is right. I urge all members of the House to get behind the member's bill.