Mr. Speaker, I think the member might want to read the statement I made because the statement I made in no way attacked the judgment rendered by the judge. I actually questioned the fact there is a stunning silence on the part of the Conservatives, who have made their mantra, “If you do the crime, you do the time”.
Conservatives are tough on crime and have never shied away from publicly criticizing sentences they feel are too lenient. In fact, the Prime Minister last January publicly criticized a court judgment that he felt was too lenient, and he did so publicly.
The criticism in my statement was of the Conservatives' hypocrisy when it comes to one of their own receiving what they would normally deem to be a lenient sentence and what they would publicly cite as another case where the judgment has been too lenient and the defendant has not been given the severe sentence he or she should have been given. There is a stunning silence on their part.
I understand very well the principle that one should not criticize judgments that come down from our judiciary. I do not. They do, including the Prime Minister, the Minister of Justice, and the deputy House leader or deputy whip. They have not shied away from publicly criticizing criminal sentences that are tabled. I do not do so, but I will criticize their hypocrisy. I will criticize their silence now when one of their own gets a slap on the wrist for driving drunk and having illicit drugs in his car while driving.