Mr. Speaker, it is a pleasure to rise on behalf of the New Democratic Party to address Bill C-79, an act respecting victims of crime.
All the previous speakers who worked on the committee and the minister herself mentioned that this was a good day. It is a recognition of what a committee can do when parties put aside partisan differences and work in a constructive way for the benefit of Canadians. It is, and the minister referred to it, a tribute to the late Shaughnessy Cohen who chaired this committee.
I am cognizant of the remarks of the member for Surrey North. Much of the preliminary work was done for the committee prior to my election in June 1997. It was done in the last parliament. It is against that backdrop we should examine the work of the committee, the recommendations of the committee and the bill brought forward by the minister.
I came to the House and became the spokesperson for the New Democratic Party on justice as a former defence lawyer. I came to the committee dealing with the role of victims with much of the preconceived ideas that one would have, as did my colleague from Pictou—Antigonish—Guysborough who came here as a former crown prosecutor. It is fair to say that all parties brought a perspective to the committee which helped to shape what became a unanimous report by the committee presented to the House of Commons.
It is a tribute to both the Conservative member for Pictou—Antigonish—Guysborough and the member for Surrey North who brought the perspective of the victim to the committee. Also a Bloc Quebecois member brought to the committee the perspective of provincial rights and the importance of understanding the roles of the federal and provincial governments. Members of the Liberal Party brought a sense of listening to the victims.
We put aside our differences. We debated some very fundamental issues about which I will speak in a moment. As a result we were able to come to a unanimous report which is a tribute to both the chair of the committee and to the work that went into it. I do not think we can underestimate the importance of the day and a half long meeting all members of that committee from all parties had with not just victims of crime but with representatives of every aspect of the criminal justice system.
There was goodwill. Whether they were from the National Police Association, groups representing victims of crime, the Canadian Bar Association or the Defence Lawyers Association, there was a real attempt by the participants in that meeting to work constructively and represent to members of parliament the kinds of changes that had to be made in the criminal justice system to accommodate what has for a long time been neglected, that is the role of victims in the criminal justice system.
Much has been said about the rights of victims and much has been said about the rights of criminals. Working at this level on the committees I think all of us struggled with some difficult questions. On the surface it seems fairly straightforward. One is a victim of crime. One ought to be afforded certain rights. One is a criminal. Certainly criminal rights ought not to supersede those of the victim.
However, when we scratch the surface and begin to explore what that means, there are difficult questions. When does one move from being an accused to being a criminal? When does one move from being the accuser to being a recognized victim?
The member for Surrey North has mentioned that there is a definition of victim in the act which requires careful scrutiny. There is a hazy area where we still have to ensure the balance between the presumption of innocence and a recognition that a wrong has been done, a balance between the rights of the accused before a finding of guilt or innocence and the rights of the person who is accusing them, and then competing balances when there is a finding by the court of guilt. Where one becomes a criminal the accuser moves into a different area and certainly the victim has been affirmed as in fact a victim.
We struggled with those competing rights and how best the legislation could meet the balance of ensuring the protection of the rights of the accused on one hand and the role of the victim on the other.
We have to be very careful when we talk about rights to understand that rights are not a little package which each independent individual person carries around in a briefcase. Rights are collective. They are all our rights. When the rights of an accused are infringed upon my rights are infringed upon, as are the rights of every citizen in the country. When a victim's rights are not adhered to, my rights are not adhered to. Nor are the rights of anyone in the country.
It is not as though we have a section on victims rights here that goes to war against the accused rights there. They are the collective responsibility and fall into the safeguard of all of us as citizens. That is why the committee struggled so hard. That is certainly the perspective that we from the New Democratic Party brought to find that important balance where we safeguard the rights of all Canadians and ensure that justice is done and seen to be done.
The legislation responds to a number of unanimous recommendations that came forward from the justice committee and which all parties signed on to. The act does a number of things. I think it is worth examining exactly what is in the legislation.
As has been commented upon, it provides that all offenders must pay a victim surcharge of a fixed minimum amount, except where the offender establishes undue hardship, and provides for increased amounts to be imposed in appropriate circumstances. Not only is that important in bringing responsibility to bear on the part of the offender, which it does. It also provides a revenue by which many of the programs can be funded.
This was a criticism, some may recall, that we had of the initial act to replace the Young Offenders Act because of the costs. These things cost money. It is important to know where the sources of revenue will be and who will bear those costs. In many cases it will be the provinces in both this legislation and in the legislation to which I just referred. It is important to know where the source of revenue will come from.
This provides some moneys to go toward establishing what will be necessary to implement the law. This law will create a greater burden on the courts. There is no question about that. It will create a greater burden on the role of crown prosecutors or crown attorneys, as they are referred to in some provinces.
Prior to this legislation the crown answered almost exclusively to the state which it represented. There will be increased pressure on the crown to respond and to ensure the victim plays an essential role in the criminal justice process. Some of those costs to the provinces can be recouped through this victim surcharge tax.
There are also provisions to ensure victims are informed of their opportunity to prepare a victim impact statement at the time of sentencing. One of the most important aspects of the legislation to the victim is that it is essential to the victim of a crime, especially after the finding of guilt at the time of sentencing.
At that point we are no longer talking about the competing rights of the accused and of the person who accuses. At that point there is a determination of guilt. We know then there is an offender who has committed a criminal offence and a person who has been done wrong. It is important they be given an opportunity at the time of sentencing to prepare a statement and to deliver it either in written form or orally before the court.
Many cases before the courts today involve young victims. That is why there is a section extending protection to victims of sexual or violent crime up to the age of 18. It restricts personal cross examination by self-represented accused persons.
The purpose of that was to ensure where a young person of 16 or 17 years is a victim of a sexual crime and an accused wants to be self-represented that the accused did not intimidate the young person. An important caveat to that, which indicates the balance between the rights of the accused and the rights of the victim, is contained in the legislation. It is one that we on behalf of the New Democratic Party brought to the table at the justice committee.
The section actually reads that protection is provided to the young person and the accused cannot personally cross-examine him or her. It also makes a provision for the court to appoint a lawyer for the purposes of cross-examination. We cannot refuse the accused the right to question the person who accuses them. At the same time we do not want the accused to be able to intimidate the victim, so we have provided for the court to appoint a lawyer to perform that function. That is a very important aspect of the balancing act in the legislation.
I am pleased to say that the NDP supports the overall intent of the legislation to give victims and witnesses of crime a greater role in the criminal justice system and to increase safeguards for those victims. The legislation attempts to strike that balance which we will be looking at very carefully in committee to ensure it does. I have already spoken about the need to ensure it does not infringe upon the rights of the accused at the same time as it provides an opportunity for the victim.
The establishment of the policy centre for victims of crime announced earlier this year is important. That is intended to ensure that all federal policies and legislation take into account the concerns of victims. This is a major step forward. It is something we recognize and applaud. It is the type of approach that could be applied in other areas of social policy.
I have often thought we ought to have a policy centre for poverty where we might ensure that legislation is looked at through a lens in terms of what it will do to those who are currently poor in this wealthy country. It is a step and it may provide a model we can use in other areas.
It is our hope that the legislation will redress many of the concerns raised by victims and make it easier for victims and witnesses to play a meaningful role in the courts.
From my own years in the courts it is clear that the judiciary in many cases looked in the past to the crown to represent the views of the victim to some extent, especially at sentencing hearings. This will provide victims an opportunity to fulfil that role themselves. It is important legislation in that regard.
It goes some way to meeting the needs expressed by many victims at the round table. Again I applaud them for coming forward. I think that much of this would not have happened but for their work. It is a testament to the way laws can be drafted in a democratic society when a group of people who feel they have a contribution to make, and this group certainly did, can come forward through their elected representatives and the government can respond to an all-party committee and accept the recommendations.
As has been indicated, there are some areas that have not been accepted yet. We will be watching very carefully to see what kind of changes take place under the solicitor general's department with regard to the Corrections and Conditional Release Act. We will be watching that to ensure they match up with the recommendations of the all-party committee. However, it is an example of the government responding and I think it is to be congratulated for that.
I believe also that members of the committee in the other parties are to be congratulated for coming forward in the positive way they did. Let us hope we can continue to reform the criminal justice system with that kind of spirit.
We will be looking at the legislation carefully. We in the NDP will continue to advocate for a sensible, compassionate response to the victims of crime, but one that takes into account the essential balancing that is so necessary for justice to be done in the criminal justice system.