Mr. Speaker, let me emphasize that it is important to get that through. I have been on the justice committee for over seven years now and up to this point we have not heard from any government witnesses, ministers or officials that there is a crying need to amend those other eight sections of the Criminal Code.
After I saw what was being proposed in the bill, I had the opportunity to spend time with criminal defence lawyers, prosecutors and, more important, police officers and police chiefs. They are all telling me that they do not see any problem. They understand we want the amendment to section 494 because of the Chen case but they are not aware of any problem with sections 34 to 42, the provisions that allow for self-defence of the person or property. There just does not seem to be a crying need for it.
Why the government would have combined them when there is a crying need for amendments to section 494 and why it is moving down that road at all really begs the question. There is no crisis that needs to be addressed. That much is fairly clear.