Mr. Speaker, we are here today to speak to Bill C-14, an act to amend the Criminal Code, the Youth Criminal Justice Act and the National Defence Act regarding bail and sentencing.
Canadians have waited a long time for the Liberal government to take serious measures to end violence in communities across the country. Since 2015, this government has chosen to let violent offenders walk free rather than protect innocent Canadians. The reality is that there are now more dangerous criminals on our streets and in our communities, which are becoming less and less safe.
Unfortunately, there are countless victims. Savannah Rose Kulla-Davies, a mother of four, was killed by a criminal released on bail in Brampton. Bailey McCourt was killed just three hours after a criminal was released on bail in Kelowna. Hung Trang and Ban Phuc Hoang were killed by a criminal released on bail in Edmonton. In Manitoba, a criminal killed his sister while out on bail. Out of respect for those victims and their families, Bill C‑14 needs to go further. We must do it for them, in their memory, to prevent further victimization.
In his comments on violent repeat offenders in Winnipeg, Winnipeg mayor Scott Gillingham said that these figures confirm what frontline officers see every day, namely that it is always the same people who go through the justice system, committing violent crimes over and over again. After numerous warnings to this government, I am still a little perplexed. Conservatives on this side of the House have been asking Liberals to abandon their bail plan for years. Why did they wait so long?
A number of years ago, the Liberals passed bills C‑5 and C‑75. These two bills caused crime to skyrocket and made our communities less safe. Bill C‑5, which repealed certain mandatory minimum penalties, eliminated mandatory prison sentences for serious firearm- and drug-related offences. Bill C‑75, the Liberal catch-and-release bill, granted bail to repeat violent offenders. These bills form the foundation of the Liberals' soft-on-crime plan. It is hard to believe that a government would deliberately pass legislation that reduces prison terms for the most dangerous members of our society. The result is that Canada is less safe today than it was when the Liberals came into office.
Numbers do not lie. Here are some statistics on how the situation has evolved since 2015. Violent crime is up 55%. Gun-related crime is up 130%. Extortion has exploded, increasing by 330% all across Canada. Sexual assaults are up 76%. Homicides are up 29%. I think most Canadians would agree with me that this has been one of the greatest failures, if the not single greatest failure, of this Liberal government.
In early October, our Conservative team moved a motion asking the House of Commons to immediately pass the bill introduced by my colleague, the hon. member for Oxford, Bill C‑242, or the jail not bail act. Unsurprisingly, the Liberals voted against the motion. That is another clear sign that they do not take this matter seriously. For more than seven months now, the Prime Minister has been promising to reform the bail system in Canada. By not voting in favour of our motion, he continues to delay the implementation of measures that would make our streets safer. Canadians have waited long enough.
While I am pleased that we are talking about these matters, Bill C‑14 still does not go far enough to protect our communities.
Firstly, the principle of restraint remains intact, which preserves the existing bail culture. We must strengthen our criminal justice system to ensure that the most violent offenders in Canada cannot be released. Secondly, the mandatory minimum sentences that were repealed by Bill C‑5 have not been reinstated. We must repeal Bill C‑5 in order to guarantee that criminals who commit firearm-related offences, sexual assaults or kidnappings, or who engage in human trafficking, are given prison terms instead of house arrest.
The Liberals have weakened our bail system, putting criminals back on our streets. They have made our communities less safe, unfortunately. Their solution is to introduce a bill that begins to address the problem, but ultimately does not go far enough. It does not truly solve the crisis facing Canadians. It does not fix the broken bail system.
The same goes for Bill C‑4, making life more affordable for Canadians act. Starting in 2015, the Liberal government created a cost of living crisis. That is what happens when a government runs one inflationary deficit after another.
I hope that Bill C‑14 will be different and that the Liberals will agree to our amendments. Unfortunately, I doubt they will.
The Conservatives fought to undo the Liberals' decision on bail. I am proud of my colleagues who do battle daily to make our communities safer. There is still a lot to do to fix everything this Liberal government messed up, and Bill C‑14 is just the beginning. Unfortunately, it does not go far enough.
My priority will always be to build safer communities. I appreciate the work being done to reduce violence, but we need to do more for the victims I named earlier today.
The Conservative call to strengthen our bail system is part of our plan to stop crime and make our communities safer. Our plan includes a number of priorities that we would like to see the government implement.
We would like to see a “three strikes and you're out” law to keep the most dangerous criminals behind bars. Everyone agrees that the most dangerous criminals should be kept off our streets.
We would also like to see mandatory minimum sentences for repeat offenders. After three strikes, we propose that repeat offenders receive a minimum sentence of 10 years. That is part of our plan to incarcerate the most dangerous people in our society longer and give them time to rehabilitate.
We would like to see repeat offenders designated as dangerous offenders. That means they could only be released after demonstrating good behaviour and abstaining from all drug use. That should also include training to upgrade their skills to allow them to contribute as proud members of society and get their lives in our great country back on track.
Repeat offenders are dangerous. That is why they should only be released when they no longer pose a threat to our society. For the safety of all Canadians and for the future of our children, we need to go further than what Bill C‑14 proposes.