Mr. Speaker, the member for York West rose in this House yesterday and accused the Government of Canada of being soft on criminals and not caring for the victims of crime.
Let me set the record straight.
We recently established the Office of the Federal Ombudsman for Victims of Crime.
We have dedicated $52 million to give victims of crime greater support and a more effective voice in the federal corrections and justice system.
We have hired a victim services officer to respond to the needs of victims.
The National Parole Board will strengthen communication with victims and ensure better quality in service delivery and parole hearings.
The government supports victims of crime. We have acted to toughen the Criminal Code by tackling everything from reverse onus at bail hearings to mandatory minimum sentences.
I know the member for York West will be eager to convince her leader to support these measures because they do what she says she wants. In 2005 she said:
What's wrong is there's too much plea-bargaining with the Crown and judges are not passing down tougher sentences like they could.