Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure to rise also in this debate on DNA identification.
I have to point out just how long it has taken the Liberals to start providing our police officers with more of the technological tools, such as DNA evidence, required to protect Canadians from criminals.
Once again, and this is so typical of the Liberal approach to crime control, the Liberals are more interested in protecting the rights of criminals than the victims of crime.
Let me point out the sections in Bill C-3 that place handcuffs on the police when the government instead should be making it easier for our law enforcement officials to protect Canadians.
First, the taking and storing of DNA samples should be handled as simply and effectively as the RCMP now handle fingerprints. Currently police can fingerprint and photograph all persons who are charged with or convicted of an indictable offence. However, Bill C-3 will allow DNA samples to be taken only from those convicted of, not just charged, with offences.
Considering this, a person charged with robbery could also be wanted for rape but DNA samples cannot be collected with the Liberals' bill until after the person is convicted of robbery. Everyone knows what is likely going to happen. This accused could avoid being charged on the more serious crime of rape by simply skipping bail on the robbery charge.
Second, with Bill C-3 DNA can only be collected for convictions of a select number of designated criminal offences, not for all indictable offences as it is now with fingerprints. Therefore some of these designated offences, like robbery, arson, torture and causing death by criminal negligence, only allow DNA to be collected by court order when with fingerprints it is automatic.
This is not going to help the police to keep our homes safe from burglars and arsonists. This is not going to protect Canadians from assault, hostage takings, hijackings and all the other court order only DNA offences in the Liberals' never ending list. No, designating offences for court order only DNA is only going to give more jobs to the lawyers and the courts, presumably all Liberal friends at the bar.
A third way that Bill C-3 inadequately protects the rights of victims is that the bill would provide for the destruction of DNA at any time that the commissioner of the RCMP believes the sample is no longer required. The rationale of this section is to protect the privacy rights of criminals and the accused. However, Bill C-3 already makes it an offence to use DNA samples for wrongful purposes.
Will Canadians really be outraged if DNA is instead stored and then later used to convict a rapist who was convicted of robbery several years earlier? Whose privacy rights are more important to the Liberals, the privacy rights of the rapist or the privacy rights of the victim of the rape?
Continuing on, though, allow me to illustrate a fourth problem with Bill C-3. I would like to ask the Liberal government why is it that its proposed DNA identification act was not part of the first phase of its DNA legislation in 1995 at which time it allowed the police to get warrants to take DNA samples from suspects. More than two years have gone by since this first phase and in all this time I have to ask how many criminals could have been put behind bars while the Liberals were waiting on introducing a DNA bank.
What is more, how many more innocent Canadians will become victims to criminals until the Liberals' proposed DNA databank begins operating in another two years or so? Yet in an attempt to cover up these delays, the Liberals would like to refer Bill C-3 to committee before second reading.
This procedure no doubt is proposed because of the Liberals' reluctance to give the bill the level of debate it deserves. In other words, the Liberals do not want Reform to point out the bill's many flaws.
This is a bill that needs to be debated in the House. Referring it to committee so soon is an obvious delaying tactic to prevent Canadians from seeing just how much it panders to criminals and ignores victim rights.
Today more than ever we have evidence of the need for a national victims bill of rights that will restore a balance within the criminal justice system by placing the rights of victims above the rights of criminals. All these points about the DNA identification act and its preoccupation on the criminal's versus the victim's rights lead me to the inescapable conclusion about the Liberal government's views of criminals and ordinary Canadians. A criminal is someone to be protected, to have all the rights under the stars, sun and moon, to be set free in most cases but, if detention is necessary, to be given a nice comfortable jail cell with cable TV and all the new channels, along with conjugal visits, good home cooking and parole in a couple of months.
It is clear that Liberals do not want the bad guys in jail, but if they are forced to put them in jail they want them to enjoy their stay. A law abiding Canadian to the Liberals is simply someone whose rights become secondary to criminals in our society.
Bill C-3 reinforces this unacceptable Liberal philosophy toward crime. It does not do enough for victims of crime and it does not do enough to help the police in their job of ensuring our communities are safe places to live.
I endorse the concept of a DNA bank. It is necessary to be able to identify criminals positively and it is important for us to be able to correctly exonerate the innocent and to make certain the guilty are proven to be guilty and are punished for their crimes. This is the only way we will be able to restore true justice to our justice system.