David Lametti

[Justice, May 17th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, this bill did exactly what the premiers asked for in their letter to the Prime Minister and more. We went further by working with the provincial justice ministers and ministers of public safety.

Here is what the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police have said:

We are convinced that the legislative changes put forth in Bill C-48 will go a long way to help eliminate the preventable harm and senseless tragedies attributable to violent and repeat offenders across Canada.

[Justice, May 17th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, allow me to quote the Canadian Police Association.

...we appreciate that [ministers] have worked collaboratively with stakeholders and introduced this common-sense legislation that responds to the concerns that our members have raised.

Police, provinces and territories seem to agree about the common-sense nature of our approach. We have the support of police associations, we have the support of provinces. This would go a long way towards making our bail system not only stronger but fairer.

[Justice, May 17th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, I am proud to have tabled a bill in the House yesterday to strengthen our bail system. It targets repeat violent offenders and offences involving weapons. This is exactly what the provinces and police associations asked for.

Police associations across Canada have publicly endorsed the steps we took yesterday. Several provinces will do likewise.

[Justice, May 16th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the hon. member for Vaughan—Woodbridge for his hard work on this issue.

Canadians deserve to be safe and they deserve to feel safe. That is why today I introduced Bill C-48, a targeted bail reform bill to address violent repeat offenders, gun and knife violence, as well as gender-based violence. It is the product of collaboration with the provinces and territories.

We have had input from mayors, police, parliamentarians as well as indigenous leadership and the legal community. The police associations are already reacting favourably. It is proof of what we can do when Canadians work together.

[Justice, May 16th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, as I have said many times, the justice system and the penal system cannot be reduced to a mere slogan. To improve the system and ensure that Canadians have confidence in the system, we must work with the provinces, territories, stakeholders and police associations.

That is exactly what we did for Bill C‑75. That is exactly what we have done for Bill C‑48. That is exactly the government's approach, and it will yield results.

[Justice, May 16th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, today I had the honour of introducing Bill C‑48 precisely so we can work with the provinces, with the territories, and with police associations across Canada to strengthen the bail system in Canada.

Let me read from Tom Stamatakis' statement today. He wrote, “we appreciate that [the ministers] have worked collaboratively with stakeholders and introduced this common-sense legislation that responds to the concerns that our members have raised.”

[Justice, May 16th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate that on the other side of the House, justice policy resolves itself into a simple, silly slogan. That is not the case. It is complex. One has to work with provinces, territories, experts and police associations, and that is exactly what we have done.

I will tell members what Jon Reid, president of the Toronto Police Association, has said. He said, “Ensuring the public maintains its confidence in the administration of justice is paramount, and I believe the introduction of Bill C-48, and the clear message being sent by the government that public safety remains a top priority, will help victims of crime, as well as all Canadians”.

[Justice, May 16th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate that on the other side of the House, they believe that complex criminal justice policy resolves itself into a simple, silly slogan. That is not true. We resolve complex problems in criminal justice by working with provinces, territories, stakeholders—

[Justice, May 16th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for his question, as misguided as it is. I had the honour today to introduce in the House Bill C-48, which represents targeted measures to strengthen our bail system to meet the concerns raised by provincial premiers, our counterpart justice and public safety ministers across Canada, police associations and others.

Let me read to members what Tom Stamatakis, president of the Canadian Police Association, has said. He said, “we appreciate that [the ministers] have worked collaboratively with stakeholders and introduced this common-sense legislation that”—

[Justice, May 15th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians deserve to be safe and to feel safe.

That is exactly what we are doing. Since October, we have been working with the provinces and territories and with our counterparts in justice and public safety to see how we can improve the bail system, especially in cases of recidivism and violent crime. That is exactly what we are in the process of doing. My colleague can look at the Order Paper.