House of Commons Hansard #14 of the 43rd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was case.

Topics

Opposition Motion — Instruction to the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National SecurityBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

10:35 a.m.

Conservative

Glen Motz Conservative Medicine Hat—Cardston—Warner, AB

Madam Speaker, I am trying to dissect whether I heard the member correctly. We are going to blame a previous Harper government for a decision to protect Canadians?

Let us take off the table the whole aspect of whether prostitution should be criminalized or not. The fact is that a violent offender was released into the public. The Parole Board knew the risk. The risk was identified to the board and yet it continued to say that the person should be released, that it would go ahead and let him out on day parole even though he has many years left on his sentence. He definitely had not demonstrated that he was capable of being out on his own and was a responsible member of society.

Why is the Parole Board even in a position to release those if they present a risk? That is exactly what the motion is about. Let us put a mechanism in place so the Parole Board does not feel obligated to release people to continue to put Canadians at risk. That is what this is all about. I cannot believe anybody in the House would oppose that position.

Opposition Motion — Instruction to the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National SecurityBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

10:35 a.m.

NDP

Laurel Collins NDP Victoria, BC

Madam Speaker, my thoughts are with the victim and her family. This was a terrible event and we need to ensure that it never happens again.

Violence against women is a problem that needs to be tackled seriously and it is a problem that was not tackled by the previous Conservative government and has not been tackled adequately by the current Liberal government.

The misogyny at the root of this event is apparent in the act itself, in the board's decision and in the laws that prevent sex workers from taking measures that would keep them safe.

Do the Conservatives agree that the risks for violence against women and sex worker rights are explicit factors to be considered in this study?

Opposition Motion — Instruction to the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National SecurityBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

10:35 a.m.

Conservative

Glen Motz Conservative Medicine Hat—Cardston—Warner, AB

Madam Speaker, we need to focus specifically on this issue. There are many factors that we can study but we need to really focus on what we need to fix in the Parole Board and the parole system in this country.

Any time that a parole board feels obligated or feels pressured by a government to release more people to reduce the pressure on our prison system, it is taking risks. Putting people who have not served their time, who are not safe to be in our communities, who have demonstrated they have not been rehabilitated to be in our communities is a risk. Why are we even having this conversation?

I believe in rehabilitation. The purpose of our correctional system is to rehabilitate. If someone is not rehabilitated, that individual should not be released back into our society to put women, children, anyone at risk, and that is happening. That is what we have to fix.

Opposition Motion — Instruction to the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National SecurityBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

10:40 a.m.

Liberal

Kody Blois Liberal Kings—Hants, NS

Madam Speaker, I would like to extend my condolences to the family for this real tragedy.

There is a lot in the text of the motion that I would be willing to support. What concerns me about the comments of the member opposite is that he said “fresh and untrained” individuals are appointed. My concern is that the language in the motion is really pointed towards trying to take away the credibility of the people who are being appointed to these boards. I just want to be sure that the member opposite is not suggesting that the people who are appointed do not have the qualifications to be there.

Opposition Motion — Instruction to the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National SecurityBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

10:40 a.m.

Conservative

Glen Motz Conservative Medicine Hat—Cardston—Warner, AB

Madam Speaker, that is the crux of the matter here.

Multitudes of long-serving Parole Board members were replaced and new appointments were made by the Liberal government in 2017. It is the examination of that appointment process that absolutely needs to occur to make sure that those who are appointed to positions of this kind of responsibility are qualified to be there. We do not know what happened. We do not know how it happened. That is what the purpose of the motion is about.

Canadians need confidence in our total justice system, front end, middle and back. We need to ensure that we instill that confidence by identifying what processes are in place to nominate people to these boards.

Opposition Motion — Instruction to the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National SecurityBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

10:40 a.m.

Louis-Hébert Québec

Liberal

Joël Lightbound LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness

Madam Speaker, I want to join all hon. members of the House in expressing my sincerest condolences to the family and friends of Marylène Levesque, who was killed in cold blood by a coward in my Quebec City riding.

We are all deeply saddened and outraged by this tragedy. Such a tragedy would be shocking no matter the circumstances, but this one is even more so because the system that was supposed to protect Marylène Levesque and the public failed. This unspeakable tragedy has shaken the entire country, Quebec and especially my community. We must shed light on the events that led to this tragedy.

An investigation is crucial to understanding what happened, identifying those responsible and making the changes that will ensure this never happens again. Two investigations are already under way. The Quebec City police department is conducting a criminal investigation, and the Correctional Service of Canada, or CSC, and the Parole Board of Canada have convened a board of investigation.

The board was created under section 20 of the Corrections and Conditional Release Act. It is made up of five people, including two co-chairs who do not work for either of the two organizations involved. The government expects this board to complete its work as quickly as possible. Its findings will be made public and will help us understand where failures have occurred, whether at the Parole Board or CSC. These findings will be critical.

Our government also agrees that this matter should be referred to the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security for study, as prescribed in today's motion. We believe that these investigations and this study will arrive at the necessary conclusions to ensure that such a tragedy never happens again. The facts will help us achieve that, so I think it is important that we return to the facts.

The Parole Board of Canada did not approve giving the offender in question, Mr. Gallese, permission to visit massage parlours. When the Parole Board learned that correctional officers were allowing that to happen, it immediately issued an order in September 2019 for it to stop. The investigation will determine whether Mr. Gallese's case managers complied with that directive, and if that is not the case, why not. Meanwhile, I can assure the House and all members that the officers in question are no longer supervising any offenders.

One way or another, it seems clear to me that serious mistakes and failures were allowed to occur in this case. It is completely unacceptable and inappropriate for a correctional officer to include visits to massage parlours in an offender's plan, especially knowing Mr. Gallese's criminal history. It is therefore important that a thorough investigation cast light on the circumstances that led to this tragedy.

Furthermore, I note that the Conservative Party and the member for Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles are trying to use this case to prove that there is a systemic problem.

However, violent offences committed by people under community supervision are extremely rare in Canada, and they have become rarer in recent years. Over the past decade, 7,000 to 8,000 people were under some form of community supervision each year, including more than 1,000 offenders on day parole. However, in 2013 and 2014, there were only 17 convictions for violent offences committed by a person on day or full parole.

I would be wary of venturing down this road, but the Conservatives seem to be leading us there anyway. I will therefore remind the members that these data are from the time when Mr. Harper's government had been in power for nearly a decade.

By comparison, in 2017-18, just five violent incidents were committed by people on day or full parole. That does not mean the system did not fail in the case of Marylène Levesque. It does not mean there is no need to fully explore the circumstances that led to this tragedy. However, when we are analyzing the correctional system as a whole, those are the numbers we need to bear in mind.

We should also bear these numbers in mind when talking about appointments to the Parole Board of Canada, whose members are highly qualified. Many things have been said on this subject, but of the 78 current members, 36% have a background in corrections, 28% are from the legal community, 17% are from the public service, 15% are from education, and 10% are former police officers. These members have training in law, psychology, criminology and social work.

Once appointed, the new board members receive rigorous training in their regions and at the Parole Board's headquarters here in Ottawa. They are trained on risk assessment, interview techniques, hearing management and decision writing, and they learn to recognize specific factors that apply to certain types of offenders, such as abusers or persons with mental health issues.

After this initial training, the new board members observe hearings. They are paired with more experienced board members and return for additional training if necessary. It is important to note that only when the regional vice-chairperson is satisfied that the new board members are ready to sit and conduct hearings are they allowed to make decisions. Only when the regional vice-chairperson believes they are ready can they assume their role as board members. The current vice-chairperson of the Quebec region was not only appointed by the Conservative government, but he is also a former Conservative candidate and assistant to former minister Jean-Pierre Blackburn.

It should also be noted that all board members receive annual training on risk assessment so that they can refine their skills and remain in a continuous learning mode.

I would like to once again remind members that no one can sit on the Parole Board without the approval of the regional vice-chairperson, who must be satisfied that each person has acquired the necessary skills and expertise to sit as a member of the Parole Board. The current regional vice-chairperson of Quebec is a former Conservative candidate appointed by the Conservative Party.

In fact, many members appointed by the Harper government had strong ties to the Conservative Party. I am not calling the qualifications or abilities of these individuals into question. I would rather not go there. However, I think it is important to respond when we hear the Conservatives, and the member for Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles in particular, making false accusations about the appointment process and insinuating that there were partisan appointments.

I think it is interesting to note just how many Parole Board members who were appointed under the Conservative government were either party donors, Conservative candidates or Conservative ministerial aides. Nearly one-third of the individuals appointed to the Parole Board of Canada under Stephen Harper's government had very clear ties to the party. This was particularly true in Quebec. At the end of the Conservative reign, six of the nine full-time members were very clearly and very publicly known as Conservative Party supporters.

Yes, it is true that we put an end to the practice of partisan appointments to the Parole Board of Canada. We value expertise, experience and competence. These qualities are crucial because the work of a board member is both highly demanding and highly important.

Setting aside the board members themselves, it is important to remember what criteria they use to evaluate a parole application. They consider the following factors: the reasons and recommendations of the sentencing judge; the nature and gravity of the offence; the offender's degree of responsibility; the information obtained during the trial; and the information obtained from the victims, offenders and correctional authorities. The board members must prioritize public safety, bearing in mind that it would undermine public safety if all offenders were released at the end of their sentence with no support, monitoring or conditions.

It should be noted that the criteria I just listed have not changed in years. They are the same ones that existed under the former government, and they have not changed since we were elected. There has been no change in the criteria, and they are the criteria that guide board members in making decisions about day parole or full parole.

Public safety is the primary objective of the entire correctional and parole system. Public safety is also the primary responsibility of any government. For the past five years, our government has focused on implementing measures to address gender-based violence, which is particularly relevant in this case involving the tragic death of a young woman.

I urge all members to support our strategy to prevent and address gender-based violence. Our strategy would implement preventive measures, support survivors and facilitate knowledge building and sharing. I urge my colleagues to support increasing legal assistance for victims of workplace sexual harassment. I urge them to support increasing funding for judicial education, ethics and conduct in cases of gender-based violence, sexual assault and family violence. I urge them to support funding for preventing teen dating violence, combatting bullying and addressing sexual violence at post-secondary institutions.

I know that every single one of us wants our communities and our society to be safer.

We want women like Marylène Levesque to never again find themselves in vulnerable situations and to have the resources and support they need.

To make that happen, it is essential that we shed light on what happened in this tragic case, where a young woman from our region found herself in an extremely vulnerable situation with a man who should never have been with her.

Our government and I agree that the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security should examine this issue and shed light on it, along with the board of investigation of the Correctional Service of Canada and the Parole Board of Canada.

I think the indictment of the Parole Board of Canada's decision is akin to an indictment of a quasi-judicial body. That is why it is important to tread very carefully.

However, in this case, it is clear that the Correctional Service officer who included a visit to massage parlours in his plan acted completely inappropriately, which is why there must be an inquiry, both by the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security and the board of investigation that our government has tasked with reviewing all the facts and circumstances at every step of the decision in this case. We must draw the necessary conclusions to prevent a tragedy like the one in Quebec City from happening again. We owe it to the victim and her family. It is in the best interests of the country that we arrive at the necessary findings to prevent this from happening again.

Since this is a very sensitive discussion, I would urge all members to exercise restraint in light of the tragedy that has led to this debate.

Opposition Motion — Instruction to the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National SecurityBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

10:50 a.m.

Conservative

Pierre Paul-Hus Conservative Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC

Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Louis-Hébert.

I recognize that this is a very delicate matter and that it would be best to exercise caution. At the same time, though, we are here to speak the truth.

The Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety nevertheless brought politics into it when he compared the Conservatives' political appointments to the Liberals'.

I would like to ask the parliamentary secretary if he recognizes that, between 2007 and 2015, the recommendations came from Correctional Service Canada. They were obviously approved by the government, but the process was done by the Correctional Service. In 2015, the government purged the board of its old members, whose contracts were not renewed because they were Conservatives or because the government did not want to risk having Conservatives around, and returned to a system of Privy Council Office political appointments. Can the member for Louis-Hébert confirm this?

Opposition Motion — Instruction to the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National SecurityBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

10:50 a.m.

Liberal

Joël Lightbound Liberal Louis-Hébert, QC

Madam Speaker, when the Conservatives were in office, the recommendations came from the Parole Board, and the Conservative minister made the decision. Given the appointments made under the former government, it is obvious that membership in the Conservative Party was a criterion that was viewed very favourably by the Conservative minister at the time. By way of evidence, six of the nine Parole Board members had very close ties to the Conservative Party. They were former candidates or major donors. We put an end to the practice of partisan appointments. It is true that the process has changed. The Parole Board is still involved, as is the Minister of Public Safety, but the process is much more open.

We tried to ensure that the Parole Board achieved gender parity, which it has. That was not the case when the Conservatives were in office.

We ensured that members continue to receive proper training, that new members are supervised by experienced members, including the regional vice-chair who was appointed by the Harper government at the time, and that members are still mentored to ensure that anyone who sits on the Parole Board has the skills they need to do so.

That does not take away from the need to investigate the actions and decisions of members or of the correctional officers who were supposed to manage this case.

Opposition Motion — Instruction to the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National SecurityBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

10:55 a.m.

NDP

Scott Duvall NDP Hamilton Mountain, ON

Madam Speaker, this is a very terrible story and I think all of us in the House want to find a solution so that this never happens again in an investigation.

One of the things the member mentioned in his speech was that the Conservatives recommended their people, but in 2017, the government was warned. As the CBC notes, two former Parole Board officers warned the government that “changes to the way board members were nominated could lead to inexperienced members making 'dangerous' decisions.”

In Quebec, 14 of 16 members were not reappointed, leading to a lapse in the usual practice of pairing new members with experienced members.

Do you think we should have a review of the process that is actually happening? Maybe we made a mistake. Maybe we should not have so many inexperienced people and should not try to pair them up with experienced ones. At least it is a constructive idea, and I think it is the right idea to make sure we have done the right thing.

Opposition Motion — Instruction to the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National SecurityBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

10:55 a.m.

NDP

The Assistant Deputy Speaker NDP Carol Hughes

I want to remind the member that I am not going to give him my point of view, so I would ask him to address questions to the Chair and not to the individual members.

The hon. parliamentary secretary.

Opposition Motion — Instruction to the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National SecurityBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

10:55 a.m.

Liberal

Joël Lightbound Liberal Louis-Hébert, QC

Madam Speaker, it is important, as we go through this debate today, that we elevate ourselves above partisan politics and indeed look at the best ways to avoid a tragedy like this occurring in the future.

To the point on the nomination of commissioners, it is important to note that the training has remained very rigorous and that any new commissioner is supervised by commissioners with more experience and by the regional vice-president, who has to assess their capacity to sit on the Parole Board and make sure that at any given time they have the skills, expertise and capacities to render decisions. If the regional vice-president is not satisfied that a commissioner has that expertise, a commissioner cannot sit and render a decision on the Parole Board. That is fundamental to the training system and the ongoing training that commissioners undergo.

This does not take away from the fact that in this specific case the system failed Marylène Levesque, and we need to shed light on the circumstances that led to this tragedy. That is fundamental.

Opposition Motion — Instruction to the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National SecurityBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

10:55 a.m.

Oakville North—Burlington Ontario

Liberal

Pam Damoff LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Indigenous Services

Madam Speaker, it is a shame that the official opposition is politicizing the tragic loss of this young woman's life.

Every year, 7,000 to 8,000 people live in the community under conditional release. In 2013-14, 17 of them were convicted of a violent offence while they were out. In 2017-18, there were five. One is too many, but the fact is that this is not an endemic problem in our community. It is something the Parole Board manages quite well.

Could the parliamentary secretary speak to the importance of the independence of the Parole Board and the changes we made to the appointment process to ensure that the Parole Board is independent and is making decisions based on facts, not on emotion like the opposition is trying to have us do right now?

Opposition Motion — Instruction to the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National SecurityBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

10:55 a.m.

Liberal

Joël Lightbound Liberal Louis-Hébert, QC

Madam Speaker, I think my esteemed colleague is highlighting one of the problems with the motion we are debating today, namely the fact that it calls on us to condemn an administrative tribunal that is part of the justice system. That is a risky thing to do, and I think that we as parliamentarians should be careful before we start indicting quasi-judicial bodies like the Parole Board of Canada.

As far as appointments are concerned, it is true that we wanted to put an end to partisan appointments. When we look at the background of current board members, we can see that their education and professional experience have given them the necessary skills to perform their duties. Their training remains very rigorous.

This morning I heard Conservative members talk about the workload of correctional officers. I think it is important to remember that we reinvested $500 million in correctional services, while the Conservatives cut $850 million. I think it is also important to remember that these cuts had repercussions on the quality of analysis and on the time correctional officers can devote to each case.

Opposition Motion — Instruction to the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National SecurityBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

11 a.m.

Conservative

Brad Vis Conservative Mission—Matsqui—Fraser Canyon, BC

Madam Speaker, this issue is more pertinent to my riding than to any other place in the country. In Abbotsford, in Mission—Matsqui—Fraser Canyon, there is Pacific Institution, Mission Institution, Matsqui Institution, Mountain Institution, an indigenous healing lodge and the Fraser Valley Institution for Women.

At one of the first meetings I ever had, a number of parole officers came to my riding office and said that the crimes committed by people on day parole are not being reported. Therefore, I would challenge the parliamentary secretary to come to my riding and meet with the people on the ground.

In British Columbia, as we all know, it is not our police officers but our Crown prosecutors who lay charges. Those Crown prosecutors are not reporting the incidence of crimes committed by people on parole and the crimes they are committing.

People are seriously concerned about public safety, so let us work together. Come to my riding and see what is going on. I want you to hear it directly from the people.

Opposition Motion — Instruction to the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National SecurityBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

11 a.m.

NDP

The Assistant Deputy Speaker NDP Carol Hughes

I would love to come to the member's riding, but I would ask the member to address the questions and comments to the Chair.

The hon. parliamentary secretary.

Opposition Motion — Instruction to the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National SecurityBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

11 a.m.

Liberal

Joël Lightbound Liberal Louis-Hébert, QC

Madam Speaker, my colleague is raising an important issue, so I would be more than happy to sit down with him to hear him out on what he has heard.

Opposition Motion — Instruction to the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National SecurityBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

11 a.m.

Green

Paul Manly Green Nanaimo—Ladysmith, BC

Madam Speaker, my thoughts go out to the family and friends of the victim here. I understand that in this case, there is some extreme misogyny. This speaks to the violence against women in society and the need to protect women, especially sex workers.

My question to the hon. member is about the process of appointment. You were talking about the politicization of these appointees. Would it not be better to depoliticize this with an expert panel that could come together to make these appointments so that this is not part of the political system?

Opposition Motion — Instruction to the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National SecurityBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

11 a.m.

Liberal

Joël Lightbound Liberal Louis-Hébert, QC

Madam Speaker, we included an indigenous elder and the Parole Board of Canada in the appointment process. The Parole Board submits its recommendations to the Minister of Public Safety. If you look at the backgrounds of the board members, especially in Quebec, which was my main focus, you can see that the educational and professional experience of these members justify their appointment. The training is thorough.

We did indeed seek greater diversity. The Parole Board of Canada members at the time were almost all men. Now, there is greater parity among the full-time board members in Quebec. We put an end to the practice of partisan appointments, which appears to have essentially been a prerequisite under the previous government. We have clearly made some changes, and the process can certainly be improved. We are open to suggestions.

Opposition Motion — Instruction to the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National SecurityBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

11 a.m.

NDP

The Assistant Deputy Speaker NDP Carol Hughes

I did not want to interrupt him, but I do want to remind the member for Nanaimo—Ladysmith, and he is not the only one who has done this today, that he is to address questions and comments to the Chair and not to individual members.

Resuming debate. The hon. member for Avignon—La Mitis—Matane—Matapédia.

Opposition Motion — Instruction to the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National SecurityBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

11 a.m.

Bloc

Kristina Michaud Bloc Avignon—La Mitis—Matane—Matapédia, QC

Madam Speaker, I would like to start by saying that I will be sharing my time with my colleague, the member for Rivière-du-Nord. With his expertise in law, he will be able to probe into the specific details of the case that brings us here today.

Today's motion is a particularly sensitive matter, because it is about the death of a young woman. This woman was very close to my own age, and her death could have been prevented.

I am speaking as the new Bloc Québécois critic for public safety and emergency preparedness. I am honoured to speak on behalf of the Bloc Québécois regarding the security and protection of Quebeckers and Canadians alike. Like my colleague from Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, I find this case totally incomprehensible, especially since it is about violence against a woman, committed by a killer whose record was well known.

I am speaking today to make sure that murders like the one committed under the circumstances that led to the death of Marylène Levesque never happen again. Today, the Bloc Québécois will be supporting the Conservative Party's motion, the first point of which condemns the actions of the Parole Board of Canada. As we know, those actions led to the horrific death of a 22-year-old woman last month. This young woman was murdered by an offender who was out on day parole.

When it comes to justice, one must always be careful about criticizing decisions and policies. It is important to really understand the procedures, the laws and, most of all, the unique features of each case. The reason we are supporting this motion today is that we want to understand why the laws were not applied properly and why the procedures were not followed. The murder of Marylène Levesque could and should have been prevented.

We are not challenging the whole notion of rehabilitation. The purpose of putting an inmate who was behind bars for years on supervised parole is to rehabilitate him. In my opinion, supervised parole does not mean allowing an inmate to obtain services to satisfy his sexual needs. It is both unacceptable and in violation of the Criminal Code. In this particular case, it is clear that parole officers had information that could have prevented this murder.

First of all, the inmate could have been under closer supervision before the murder because he had allegedly violated his parole conditions previously. Second, officials could certainly have forbidden him from contacting Marylène Levesque as he did, because she was a sex worker. That seems like a logical approach to me.

I will repeat that we must be prudent when commenting on legal processes or decisions. Generally, we do not know all the facts. In the case of the murder of Ms. Levesque, the facts indicate a serious failure to comply with regulations and even federal laws governing justice and public safety. It is outrageous and even mind-boggling that the board gave the accused permission to commit a crime, that is to use the services of a prostitute with the complicity of the system that was to ensure the protection of his victim. Quebec's justice and law enforcement authorities have spoken out about this.

Quebec City police chief Robert Pigeon condemned the Parole Board decision that let an offender commit another crime, that is to see prostitutes. I will quote Mr. Pigeon: “How can someone on parole, on day parole, obtain sexual services for consideration? That is a crime under the Criminal Code.”

The chief also raised the issue of how people are chosen to sit on the various committees. We in the Bloc Québécois would also like to know. There have also been many reactions in the National Assembly. The justice minister, Sonia LeBel, like everyone else, is demanding explanations from Canada's Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, particularly regarding the reasons that led to Mr. Gallese's day parole, given his history of violence against women.

Parti Québécois member Véronique Hivon, true to form in such cases, is asking for a serious analysis of the situation and asking some vital questions. Is it a lack of training, a lack of information or a lack of analytical tools? Was it the system that failed? Personally, I think so. The system has failed. It failed Marylène Levesque, and it failed all of us.

The Auditor General of Canada produced a report in 2018, in which he stated that, because of a lack of resources, the Correctional Service of Canada could not ensure inmates' successful transition from custody to day parole, increasing the risk of reoffending.

Here we have proof that the Correctional Service of Canada is not adequately managing offenders under supervision in the community. It is completely unacceptable.

If we want our rehabilitation programs to work properly, they need to be appropriately resourced. The lack of resources had already been raised by the Auditor General. Today, the government is forced to answer the questions we are all asking ourselves, namely, what it has or has not done to fix the problem. What is most deplorable is that it took the murder of a 22-year-old woman to raise these questions.

The Bloc Québécois will also support this motion because it calls on the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security to conduct hearings into this matter.

The Minister of Public Safety may well have requested an internal investigation, but this means that it will be conducted by Correctional Service Canada and the Parole Board of Canada, the two agencies involved in this case. In my opinion, this kind of internal justice is wrong-headed, hence the need for an external investigation. Jean-Claude Boyer, a former member of the Parole Board of Canada, also believes that the investigation should be conducted externally, and independently. I would like to reiterate that this is entirely reasonable and necessary.

The Bloc Québécois will also support this motion because it calls for a review of the changes to the Parole Board of Canada nomination process made by the Liberals in 2017.

According to a survey conducted by the Parole Board in May 2019, 70% of parole officers said that they were not able to do their work properly or to properly protect the public. We are talking here about the safety of people we know, people in all of the regions of Quebec and Canada. In November 2018, the Auditor General of Canada came to a similar conclusion regarding offenders supervised in the community. How is it that nothing has been done since 2018?

Former Parole Board member Dave Blackburn expressed concerns about the new member appointment process established in 2017. He said, and I quote: “That year, the...government changed the member renewal process. Members who had already been appointed to the Parole Board had to go through the same appointment process as new candidates.”

What we understand from that is that, as a result of the new process, most experienced members did not have their mandates renewed. We can already see a number of problems there.

In closing, the Bloc Québécois will support this motion so that we can get to the bottom of the events that led to this murder, which, I repeat, could have and should have been avoided.

As a woman, as a Quebecker and as the Bloc Québécois critic for public safety and emergency preparedness, I want to offer my sincere condolences to Marylène Levesque's family. I would also like to tell them that we will do everything in our power to get to the bottom of what happened in order to honour Marylène's memory and ensure the safety of women in Quebec and Canada.

The goal is obviously to implement real measures to prevent any other such tragedies from happening in the future. The Bloc Québécois wants people to have confidence in their justice system, but that confidence has been seriously undermined.

Opposition Motion — Instruction to the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National SecurityBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

11:10 a.m.

Conservative

Brad Vis Conservative Mission—Matsqui—Fraser Canyon, BC

Madam Speaker, our justice system is broken. Our Crown prosecutors do not lay charges when they should. Our parole officers do not have resources. They are losing hope. Criminals on day parole have no incentive to follow their conditions.

What solutions does the member for Avignon—La Mitis—Matane—Matapédia have to improve the system we have in Canada and Quebec?

Opposition Motion — Instruction to the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National SecurityBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

11:10 a.m.

Bloc

Kristina Michaud Bloc Avignon—La Mitis—Matane—Matapédia, QC

Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for his question. I think a good start would be for all of us to sit down together to determine what led to this situation. We can all agree that it must never happen again. An external investigation would solve many problems, and outside scrutiny of the situation could be a good place to start.

Opposition Motion — Instruction to the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National SecurityBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

11:10 a.m.

Winnipeg North Manitoba

Liberal

Kevin Lamoureux LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the President of the Queen’s Privy Council for Canada and to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons

Madam Speaker, as we have this debate throughout the day, it is important to recognize that there are actions being taken. These were referenced by the parliamentary secretary. There is criminal action being taken, in terms of an investigation. There is also an inquiry within the Parole Board. This is very encouraging to see, and I suspect we will get a better understanding of this in the coming days and weeks.

I want to add my voice to those of others and extend my condolences to the family and friends of the victim.

This was more of a comment than a question.

Opposition Motion — Instruction to the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National SecurityBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

11:10 a.m.

Bloc

Kristina Michaud Bloc Avignon—La Mitis—Matane—Matapédia, QC

Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for his comment.

I do not understand why we had to wait for something like this to occur before asking the necessary questions. There was evidence in 2017, 2018 and 2019 that something was not working properly. These circumstances had to arise, a young woman had to be killed, for something to be done. In my view, something should have been done a long time ago.

Opposition Motion — Instruction to the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National SecurityBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

11:10 a.m.

NDP

Richard Cannings NDP South Okanagan—West Kootenay, BC

Madam Speaker, it is always a tricky business when Parliament or any legislature tries to take steps to become involved in the judicial system. I have been a member on a couple of administrative tribunals in British Columbia, and we were always concerned when the government openly questioned some of our findings. This is such an egregious matter that I think it is a proper step for us.

I wonder if the member would comment a bit more on what steps we might take. What are the precise things she would want to fix? We heard that we need an external inquiry, but she brought up some very serious concerns over what the Parole Board was allowing this person to do, and I wanted to give her that extra opportunity.