Arif Virani

[Criminal Code, December 6th, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the contributions of the member opposite to this important debate today, particularly on December 6, the 29th anniversary of the Montreal massacre.

My questions for the member opposite are twofold. First, she outlined the important issue of consent in sexual assault and how the statistics demonstrate that it remains an ongoing problem in Canada today. Part of what we are doing is improving education, sensitivity and outreach to all the actors in the judicial system. That includes training for lawyers and judges.

Would the member agree that the record of our government in appointing judges, 56% of whom are women, is a step in the right direction and compares favourably with the record of the previous government, which appointed only 30% women?

Second, she raised Bill C-75 and its relationship to this piece of legislation we are discussing. Bill C-75 includes an important provision to eliminate preliminary inquiries in sexual assault trials so that victims do not have to be revictimized by proceeding through a preliminary inquiry and having to testify again at the actual trial on the merits. Is that a step in the right direction in addressing the trauma sexual assault victims face, which was outlined by the member opposite?

[Criminal Code, December 6th, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the comments from the member opposite. I would point out that her concerns with respect to access to justice are shared on this side of the House. That is why we made important changes with respect to access to justice so that the spiral she was mentioning in terms of escalating costs and litigating all the way to the Supreme Court actually does not occur.

We have appointed more women to the bench. We have supported the bill about judicial training that was presented in this House by the former interim leader of the official opposition. We have invested significant sums of money to combat gender violence and to improve access to justice. We have allocated $187 million to combat gender violence, including sexual assault, $100.9 million to support the national strategy to address gender-based violence, and $25 million over five years for legal aid for victims specifically about workplace harassment. That is a concern for our government.

I would ask the member opposite whether she believes that those specific types of targeted investments, on this day in particular, the 29th anniversary of the Montreal massacre, go toward addressing gender-based violence as well as the access to justice points she has raised in the context of this debate.

[Criminal Code, December 6th, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate my colleague opposite's questions and her speech.

I want to outline one broad point and then ask the member opposite a specific question. The issue is not with the objective. What the Senate has proposed is clear. The issue is that it requires more study and it has not understood or analyzed the issue in a broad enough capacity. It only looks at certain types of incapacity, such as intoxicated complainants, without looking at things like cognitive disabilities. That was outlined by the minister in her opening remarks.

The question for the member opposite is this. She has raised the important issue of access to justice, specifically for female complainants. On this day, especially on the 29th anniversary of the Montreal massacre, that is an important question and contribution. However, there are other contributions. We have provided an $80 million allocation over five years and $30 million ongoing in legal aid; $25 million over five years for legal aid for victims of workplace sexual harassment, in particular, in addition to the victims fund mentioned by the minister.

Are those the types of endeavours and monetary supports that the member and her party are looking for in addressing the very important issue of access to justice for female complainants in respect to sexual assault?

[Criminal Code, December 6th, 2018]

Madam Speaker, to characterize what is in the bill as defence disclosure is inappropriate and incorrect. I refer the member opposite to the Darrach decision, paragraph 65 of the Supreme Court jurisprudence, which he is fond of quoting.

The member talked at length about the situation with Travis Vader and the McCann family. This is an important issue that affected his community directly and I appreciate his submissions in that regard. However, when the provisions in Bill C-39 that would have eliminated those unconstitutional provisions from the Criminal Code were moved into Bill C-75 and that legislative vehicle is being used to eliminate the very provisions he is talking about, I ask the member why he would have voted against that bill at third reading in this chamber last week?

[Criminal Code, December 6th, 2018]

Madam Speaker, I thank the member opposite for his comments and contributions to this chamber, and for his distinct impersonation of my hon. colleague, the parliamentary secretary to the government leader, in terms of the length of his submission, all extempore, today.

On a more serious note, I am proud to stand in this chamber to participate in this debate on one of the last days that this august chamber will be open for the next decade, and especially on December 6, when we are thinking about the victims of the Montreal massacre and gender violence.

Despite the breadth of the submission made by the member opposite, I will reduce my points to three comments and a specific question.

The first comment is in respect to section 176, which was the provision of the Criminal Code that dealt with offences against clergymen. The member opposite referenced this, and it is an important issue, but he failed to reference that not only did we understand and hear the concerns expressed at committee, but we kept that provision in the code and improved upon it by ensuring that it would not refer to only men who are in positions of religious leadership or one particular religion. In keeping with the multicultural nature of this country, which my friend opposite knows is protected in the charter, we ensured that all religious leaders of all genders are protected.

Second, an important aspect of this bill that was not referenced by the member opposite is that it would create a statutory duty for something that has been done continuously by the Minister of Justice, which is to say that there would be a statutory duty to include a charter statement.

The third point is with respect to admitting private records in the hands of the accused. The member opposite quoted case law copiously, but I would point him to the Darrach decision in 2000—

[Criminal Code, December 6th, 2018]

Madam Speaker, I appreciate the minister's comments today, especially on December 6 as we recognize the 29th anniversary of the Montreal massacre, on a bill that would address head-on gender violence, this day and everyday. I thought the minister captured the sentiment that “no” does not mean “yes”, a simple but important phrase.

I want to ask the minister two questions. One builds on the question that was posed by the NDP with respect to other efforts that have been made not just by the justice ministry but across government, to assist in addressing gender-based violence. I am thinking about the access to justice components of pro bono law in Ontario, the victims fund, as mentioned by the minister, and also our efforts to support legal aid.

Second, could the minister connect this bill to another important initiative, which is our response to the Jordan decision in Bill C-75 to clean up provisions that have been found unconstitutional? That bill would reduce backlogs and delays. How does that address our efforts to respond to Jordan?

[Petitions, December 4th, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, on behalf of 350 signatories, I have the honour of tabling a petition

The petitioners ask that the House of Commons support Bill S-214 and ban the sale and manufacturing of animal tested cosmetics and their ingredients in Canada. With alternative safety tests available that are faster, more accurate and cheaper, animal testing is unnecessary to prove the safety of cosmetic products, let alone the ethical difficulties with this practice.

[Criminal Code, November 28th, 2018]

Madam Speaker, with respect to comments just made by the member for Cowichan—Malahat—Langford, we specifically understood that concern and that is why the amendment was made to 802.1, to allow provincial regulatory bodies and law societies to permit agents to appear for summary convictions of up to two years less a day.

With respect to the member for Edmonton West and what we are doing for victims, we are increasing the penalties for summary conviction offences to two years less a day, up from six months. We are also increasing the penalties for intimate partner violence because we take that seriously on this side of the House.

I want to thank the member on this side of the House for his comments and reference something he raised extensively with respect to preliminary inquiries. That was highlighted in the Supreme Court Jordan decision. It was raised at the consultations by the minister across the country, including the province of Manitoba, where various attorneys general indicated a need to reduce the backlogs by eliminating preliminary inquiries.

In respect of preliminary inquiries in sexual violence trials, does the member appreciate that there is a concern about re-traumatizing the victims, making them go through a preliminary inquiry where they would relive the experience and subsequently reliving it again a second time at a subsequent trial? Is that an important aspect of why we have moved forward to remove preliminary inquiries—

[Criminal Code, November 28th, 2018]

Madam Speaker, very briefly, as to the competency of the government, I would point to our medical assistance in dying bill, Bill C-45, and Bill C-46, and our appointment of 240 judges.

The member opposite took issue with peremptory challenges. The question I would put to him is on this issue. First of all, we have not just eliminated peremptory challenges, but are allowing judges to ensure that any jury will be diverse and represent the community it serves. We emphasize challenges for cause.

Does the member opposite believe, as in England, as it was done 30 years ago, that it is important that if one seeks to stand aside a juror, one has a reason for that, other than simply just the way that juror looks, and that one can enunciate that reason in front of an impartial adjudicator?

[Criminal Code, November 28th, 2018]

Madam Speaker, I thank the member opposite for his contribution to today's debate and, again, for his contribution to the justice committee. To assert as the member just did that somehow the government is not listening attentively to, or indeed hearing, and validating the work being done in committee is just patently false. Fifty amendments to the bill were accepted at committee. Some were from the member opposite and his party. They included four key areas relating to routine police evidence; the use of illegal agents; the hybridization of terrorism and genocide offences that I outlined in my speech, with amendments proposed by the Conservative Party; and finally, the bawdy house and vagrancy provisions, which were also addressed and accepted at committee. Therefore, to assert in this chamber that somehow the committee's work was not validated is simply incorrect.

My question is about those important changes to the bawdy house and vagrancy provisions, because more than just those, there is a key provision in the bill to repeal section 159 of the Criminal Code. To simplify matters for people watching, section 159 basically says that consensual sexual activity among a gay young couple is illegal, whereas among a heterosexual young couple it is perfectly legal. By removing 159 we would be creating equality for young gay couples in Canada. Does the member opposite agree with this kind of change being commensurate with the approach that is necessary in 2018 to address LGBTQ discrimination in Canada?