Mr. Speaker, as a government, we have said unequivocally that crystal meth is a serious problem. We have articulated it as a policy and we have acted in that regard.
House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2011, with 41% of the vote.
Organized Crime October 19th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, as a government, we have said unequivocally that crystal meth is a serious problem. We have articulated it as a policy and we have acted in that regard.
Organized Crime October 19th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, we take crystal meth seriously and that is the reason that we took the initiatives we did this summer in that regard with my colleague, the health minister.
As well, we have a specific pro-prosecutorial policy with regard to all drug prosecutions at this point with regard to community impact statements, with regard to submissions on the gravity of the offence and with regard to the entire approach to allow the courts to appreciate the gravity of the offence and the responsibility of the offender.
Organized Crime October 19th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, my response, if the hon. member wishes to take it seriously, is that we have taken initiatives. We took them already this summer. We are not engaged in fearmongering. We are engaged in law enforcement.
Organized Crime October 19th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, that is yet another misrepresentation by the hon. member of the opposition.
With respect to the question of house arrest, we have said that with regard to all serious offences we will be introducing legislation that will put an end to conditional sentencing in those matters.
Justice October 19th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, the opposition does not take note of the fact that we have some of the most stringent penalties in the world right now. We have given notice both with regard to the reform of the conditional sentencing regime and with respect to the inquiry now with regard to bail review reform under the federal-provincial-territorial conference.
Criminal Code October 17th, 2005
Madam Speaker, I tried to give some data in my remarks today. I acknowledged that because of the clandestine nature of the trafficking phenomenon, we did not always have the data we would like to have and that there were differences with regard to the data itself. The United Nations will identify some 700,000 persons as being trafficked every year. UNICEF will tell us that 1.2 million children alone are trafficked every year. The International Labour Organization will tell us about those who are trafficked into forced labour and the likes.
This is not just a matter of sexual exploitation. It is a phenomenon and we need to get as much data about it as possible so we can address it effectively and properly. Any assistance that could be provided for that purpose from the hon. member would be welcomed as well.
Criminal Code October 17th, 2005
Madam Speaker, I want to express my appreciation to the hon. member for his comments and highlight two important points that he made.
We see the legislation as a first important step, but as I indicated in my remarks at third reading of the bill, a larger and more comprehensive strategy is needed. We have therefore set up an interim ministerial committee with representatives from 17 departments and agencies. The committee will develop a comprehensive domestic and international strategy which will include the important component of prevention along with protecting victims and bringing perpetrators to justice.
On the second point he mentioned, I want to highlight the importance of protecting victims. We cannot find ourselves in the situation where victims are victimized again through the process of deportation rather than through the domestic processes of protection.
I concur that this effort must be international. It cannot be addressed only at the domestic level. We need to engage the international community and look to countries as demonstrating their responsible global citizenship by how they are treating global slave trade.
I want to commend the hon. member for making these remarks. We will seek to incorporate them in our strategy as well.
Criminal Code October 17th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, I remember the hon. member as one of my top students, and later an excellent criminal lawyer prior to becoming an MP. His knowledge and expertise in this area are without question. He has shown that today.
He has addressed a point I had neglected and I thank him for that. This bill is important because it concerns organized crime. I support everything the hon. member has said about the importance of combating organized crime and the importance of having resources for that fight.
I would also like to indicate that I endorse his comments with respect to the hon. member for Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles and his commitment to certain other bills in addition to this one. Like him, I hope to see it passed and implemented as promptly as possible.
Criminal Code October 17th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, I have been listening to the comments of the hon. member and I will refrain from any ad hominem personal approaches because they are simply unproductive and inappropriate in a Parliament that should have civil debate. I will address the issue on the merits and with respect to the evidence.
I first want to reaffirm what I said before. I have no personal nor professional aversion with regard to mandatory minimums. If it could be demonstrated to me on the evidence that it would work, then I would be prepared to be responsive. All the evidence that I have studied domestically and internationally says the opposite.
Second, with regard to this bill, which is the subject of our debate, it contains some of the most stringent penalties in the whole of criminal law with regard to this type of criminal activity. Because references have been made to other countries, as I indicated earlier, not only does it compare with respect to the sentencing in the U.S. anti-trafficking legislation, but the United Kingdom, for example, has up to 14 years imprisonment on indictment. Australia has up to 25 years imprisonment for a slavery offence and up to 19 years imprisonment for sexual servitude in matters which we are providing for life imprisonment. New Zealand has up to 14 years imprisonment. Even on a comparative basis, this is not only one of the most stringent penalty frameworks in the whole of our criminal law domestically but it also compares favourably internationally.
In the matter of conditional sentences, the hon. member opposite said that it was the nature of the conditional sentences which had been handed out that developed the groundswell for mandatory minimums. The hon. member knows I have given notice to this Parliament that we will be introducing legislation to reform the conditional sentencing regime, legislation that I trust will have the support of all members of Parliament so that conditional sentencing will be used for the purposes for which it was specifically intended and not to be used for purposes of providing house arrest or any other penalty of that kind where a serious and violent criminal offence has occurred. We will be reforming the conditional sentencing regime.
Finally, when the hon. member says that there is a call of Canadians for mandatory minimums, I would not purport to speak in the name of all Canadians. If he wishes to speak in the name of all Canadians, he can choose to do so. All I am saying is I seek to legislate in the interest of all Canadians and I am doing so on the basis of the best appreciation we can make on the domestic and international evidence as to what will work as a deterrent, what will be effective and what will be helpful for our criminal justice system and which will best protect Canadians and their security and safety.
That is our objective, an objective which we know is shared by members opposite. We do not need to get into ad hominems to make our point. Let us look at the evidence and make our case on the evidence.
Criminal Code October 17th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, I have no aversion, neither personally nor professionally, with regard to mandatory minimum penalties.
I have studied the evidence both domestically and internationally and, as I have said, I am always open to any other evidentiary appreciations that I am not aware of. I have done a very comprehensive study of the evidence domestically and internationally which shows that mandatory minimum penalties serve neither as a deterrent nor are they effective.
I found that counter-intuitive. I thought when I looked into it that mandatory minimums would work but the evidence has shown that they do not. The evidence has shown that mandatory minimums have outcomes for the criminal justice system that are prejudicial to the very purposes we are seeking to bring about, namely that they tend to bring about lower imprisonments. In other words, mandatory minimums become the maximum rather than the minimum. We have protracted cases where less people enter guilty pleas.
That is why, for example, the American Bar Association in 2004 called for the repeal of all mandatory minimum sentences in the United States. The United States Supreme Court, during a case in 2005, said that it would be unconstitutional to require mandatory guidelines and said that it should look to sentencing in terms of an advisory approach.
A comprehensive study done in Canada looked at the situation internationally as well as domestically and came to the conclusion that mandatory minimum sentences were neither effective nor deterrents. If it can be shown that they would be deterrents, that they would be effective and that they would not be prejudicial to our shared objectives in the criminal justice system of deterring crime I would have no aversion to it.
Our approach is based on the proportionality principle in sentencing namely, that the sentence should reflect the gravity of the offence and the responsibility of the offender. I want to state something that I think on this point the courts appreciate with regard to this offence. A review of Criminal Code cases from March 2004 to February 2005 identified at least 31 individuals who were charged with traffic and related offences. This resulted in 19 convictions and the remaining 12 cases are before the courts. In all cases, sentences were imposed of up to 9.5 years imprisonment, and I am talking about before this legislation with its maximum life imprisonment and the signal that sends to would-be offenders.