Mr. Speaker, like some of the members who have spoken before, I will start by saying it is no pleasure to be standing here speaking on Bill C-45. Instead we should be debating Bill C-226. Bill C-226 calls for the complete abolition of section 745 of the Criminal Code instead of this tinkering which will only restrict multiple murderers from having access to early parole.
It is no pleasure for me or any Reform MP to stand here debating a bill as weak as this piece of legislation is. This bill reflects the weakness in the justice minister's approach to dealing with crime and the weakness that has shown up in other legislation that he has presented to the House. It is totally out of line with what Canadians want. It is no pleasure to be speaking to this bill when we should be speaking on Bill C-226.
I will summarize what is in Bill C-45, the legislation we are debating today. First, this bill removes the eligibility again only for multiple murderers to apply for judicial review and early parole. Somehow it is saying that multiple murderers should be denied parole but that we should consider early parole for people who have only killed one person. We are talking about first degree murder. Somehow in the minds of the Liberals it is not that serious anymore to kill just one person in a premeditated fashion. That is what they are indicating with this bill. That is my first point.
Second, the bill states that the applicants have to persuade a judge that they have a reasonable prospect for success before they are permitted to take their case to a jury.
The bill also deals with the point that a section 745 jury would have to reach a unanimous decision for an applicant's parole ineligibility to be reduced. Currently only a two-thirds majority is required. That is a slight toughening in that area.
Again, the government somehow indicates the idea that a person who has only planned and committed one premeditated murder is just not a serious enough offence to be denied early parole. This is a thought that is totally out of touch with what Canadians want.
The main point Reform makes and which I want to make is that nothing short of abolishing section 745 of the Criminal Code is good enough. Why are we wasting our time today and yesterday debating this very weak bill which will not abolish section 745?
What do Canadians have to do to get their point across on this issue? They have held mass rallies, signed petitions, gone to the justice minister and to Liberal members of Parliament in droves. I bet I could not find one Liberal member of Parliament who has not had constituents come to him or her saying that they wanted section 745 of the Criminal Code abolished completely. I bet there is not one, Mr. Speaker, you included. They have heard, but why have they not listened?
It is not good enough to tinker with section 745. It must be abolished. I make that as clear as possible because that is what Canadians are asking for.
At a recent June assembly, 98 per cent of Reform delegates said they wanted section 745 of the Criminal Code abolished. I believe that percentage fairly closely, although certainly not completely, reflects the opinion of Canadians as a whole. The percentage may not be as high. In some constituencies it is certainly very high.
MPs who took the time to survey their constituents found extremely high levels of support for abolishing section 745. What we saw at the Reform assembly very closely reflects what Canadians feel about the issue. It not just Reformers who want to get rid of section 745, but also victims of violence, the Canadian Police Association and the majority of Canadians.
During debate on Bill C-68, the gun control bill, the justice minister focused again and again on the fact that the Canadian chiefs of police and the Canadian Police Association supported the bill. The Canadian Police Association supports abolishment of section 745, not just tinkering. Its members have told that to the justice minister very clearly. They left no doubt. Why did the justice minister hang his hat on the opinion of the Canadian Police Association concerning Bill C-68 and then completely ignore its members on this bill? The answer is that it does not suit his agenda, the agenda of the Prime Minister or the agenda of the Liberal Party.
Bill C-45 still provides a glimmer of hope for first degree murderers. That seems to be an important issue to the justice minister, to the Liberal Party and to many of these Liberal MPs. It is funny how that is so important to these people. It is less important that the victim was offered no glimmer of hope before this murderer planned and committed that first degree murder. There was no concern about that expressed by the murderer.
The government should focus a bit more on the fact that the victim was not be offered a glimmer of hope by this first degree murderer. That is important.
Bill C-45 retains the right of first degree murderers to appeal their parole ineligibility while denying only multiple murderers this right. The taking of one life, as I said before, seems less serious than the taking of two. If the justice minister wants to make the distinction between single and multiple murderers he should have proposed consecutive sentencing rather than concurrent sentencing. That is the way to differentiate between the people who kill one and people who kill two. This would have put at least some value on the second victim of a first degree murderer.
Because that did not happen and because of what is not in the bill, it is important to once again point out the difference between the approach of the government and Reform MPs on this issue. I want to make this absolutely clear. Reformers want the abolition of section 745, nothing less. They want first degree murderers to serve at least the maximum 25 year sentence that is possible under our laws with no chance of parole. What Reformers are speaking for is what Canadians want.
When Liberals speak on the bill for whom are they speaking? It is clear Liberals speaking on this bill are speaking for the justice minister, the Prime Minister and the Liberal Party. Many of them are not speaking for what they believe. They certainly are not speaking for what they heard from the constituents that have come to them.
Reformers are speaking for the majority of Canadians on this issue. There is no doubt of that. Reformers are speaking for millions of Canadians on this issue.