Mr. Speaker, this summer I spent some time meeting with people in the municipalities and the band chiefs on Indian reserves talking about the problems with youth justice, youth vandalism and youth criminal activity. If we had unlimited dollars it would not be a problem. The problem is that we do not have the money. When a youth is charged with abuse at this point in time, it could take up to 12 months before the youth appears in court. What are we to do with these young offenders?
I know all communities have a problem wrestling with what to do with kids who continually damage property. Under the new act we cannot lock them up. What do we do with them? The support system is not there. We need more federal dollars to support the programs and initiatives found in the Youth Justice Act but without the money it just does not work.