moved for leave to introduce Bill C-226, an act to amend the Criminal Code (self-defence).
Madam Speaker, this is a bill on self-defence. At the present time, the Criminal Code allows the instigator of a fight to claim that he acted in self-defence, even if he kills his victim. That anomaly has resulted in a controversial decision being handed down by the Supreme Court on February 23, 1995.
According to the chief justice of Canada, the decision gives illogical and absurd results, since the worse the aggression is, the more the instigator can use the wider ground of defence. Under my proposed bill, the instigator of a fight would no longer be able to use that defence when the victim dies. Only individuals who do not start the fight would be able to say that they acted in self-defence.
(Motion deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed.)