Peter MacKay

[Criminal Law Amendment Act (2001), October 18th, 2001]

Mr. Speaker, I was discussing section 690 of the criminal code which deals with miscarriages of justice. Members would know that currently there is a case on the landscape regarding Steven Truscott, who was convicted of murder at age 14 on very speculative and circumstantial evidence. A book has been published with respect to his case and there is also a section 690 application forthcoming from Mr. Truscott and his lawyer.

The House would know that appellate courts usually hear wrongful conviction cases and grant remedies. After the judicial avenues have all been exhausted, section 690 of the criminal code empowers the justice minister to review alleged wrongful convictions. The courts may not have detected or may not have been privy to certain information that was available at the time and therefore may not have granted the proper remedies.

Many observers and critics have looked at the new proposed section and view it with somewhat of a jaded eye since the proposed amendments do not accomplish much. They still leave the power of overturning the conviction in the hands of the minister.

In the British example it is put before an impartial body that reviews the evidence with greater impartial investigative powers. Many lawyers, including a very eminent lawyer, James Lockyer who works with the AIDWYC group, maintain that it is much better to put this power in the hands of an impartial arbitrator or adjudicator.

The elements of wrongful convictions and the harm that can flow are substantial and severe. I hope the Minister of Justice would continue to examine it. I hope that passing the amendments under section 690 would not preclude revisiting this when greater evidence is brought forward.

The House would also know that there is a hearing under way at this time that may bring to light new evidence that would bear on this section.

Generally speaking the legislation that we have before us is something that is very positive. It allows crown prosecutors greater powers with respect to the laying of certain charges. Crown prosecutors like Kathy Pentz of the Nova Scotia public prosecution service and prosecutors from across the country will be pleased when they are informed of these new criminal code sections that would come into effect upon the passage of the legislation.

I was encouraged to see that the department would now undertake to prepare documents that would accompany changes to the criminal code. These would be made available to the provincial attorneys general and the counterparts of the minister at the federal level to allow for a quick synergy or transition into being of these sections.

The coalition is supportive of the bill. We raised a number of amendments at the committee stage and we were given an opportunity to hear from numerous witnesses on this omnibus bill. I alluded earlier to the fact that this legislation was split into eight sections. The bill before us, Bill C-15A, has been whittled down to contain six of the positive elements that we fully support.

The legislation talks about the need to create a higher penalty standard for disarming a police officer. It talks about upping the ante in terms of sentencing ranges that could be meted out for home invasion. Members of the coalition and other members of the House would have preferred that a separate distinct offence for home invasion was brought into the criminal code to reflect the seriousness of that type of criminal behaviour.

An offender who enters a home knowing that the person is in the house and attempts to commit a robbery or a burglary that very often results in a physical confrontation merits a separate criminal code offence that would be more of a deterrent. It would have a greater impact in the criminal justice system if it were considered a separate, stand alone offence.

I referred at the very outset to the changes in the criminal code that pertain to the broadcasting of pornographic material over the Internet. Internet service providers, particularly smaller Internet service providers, raised their concerns in committee. Amendments were put forward that would have provided greater certainty for those individuals, but those amendments were defeated by the Liberal majority.

Internet service providers such as AOL Canada strongly supported the government's effort to limit the existence of child pornography online and to capture the wrongdoers. However it felt the bill should have been amended to eliminate what it felt was the possibility of liability attached to the stakeholders who participate in the blocking or the removal of the material.

These Internet service providers are being very diligent in their efforts to self-police their systems. Yet they were concerned that by virtue of the wording of this legislation they could get caught in the net of cracking down on individuals who bring forward online pornography.

The legislation includes the wording “actual or constructive knowledge” and therein lies the problem. What constitutes actual knowledge, particularly constructive knowledge in the online context? The amendments I put forward were rejected. Yet any person who knowingly transmits, sells, imports or is in possession of this type of material can be prosecuted under offences that pertain to child pornography.

I realize that this is a comprehensive bill. I will now deal with criminal harassment. Senator Oliver of the other place has been extremely diligent in pursuing this issue to increase the penalties for those who engage in harassment or stalking, as it is more commonly known.

Stalking is an offence that has come to public knowledge in the past number of years. Women are most often the victims of such harassment and have their entire lives disrupted by persistent phone calls, mail, or by having an individual follow them on many occasions. This type of behaviour can be very dangerous. It is often a precursor to physical assaults and sexual assaults.

The coalition is supportive that penalties for convictions for criminal harassment would be raised. It was the Conservative government in 1993 that introduced through Bill C-126 amendments to the criminal code which first put this offence into legislation. The maximum penalty at that time was five years. This legislation would increase that penalty to 10 years.

We view the legislation as positive and a step in the right direction to ensure greater public safety. It would provide a greater deterrence to offenders who after due process have been convicted under criminal code sections. We look forward to it becoming part of the criminal code along with the other consequential pieces of legislation that are amended by its passage. The coalition will be supporting this legislation.

[Anti-terrorism Act, October 18th, 2001]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to have an opportunity to contribute to the debate on Bill C-15A. As the House will know, the legislation was somewhat controversial in that we had an opportunity to pass the bill last June at the close of the session. There was much willingness on the part of the opposition to divide the bill and take away its more controversial elements that dealt with cruelty to animals and firearms legislation.

To her credit the minister, after much kicking and screaming, finally agreed to do just that and as a result we have a piece of legislation that is much more workable. The co-operative effort on the part of all members of the justice committee has been admirable in that regard.

As I mentioned, the bill deals with more or less contentious elements of the criminal code and can generally be seen as a positive bill. It goes beyond mere housekeeping. It would create new offences aimed specifically to protect children from stalking and the perpetration of pornographic material on the Internet.

Bill C-15A is a an attempt at modernization. With new and expanding forms of communication over the Internet this type of legislation is necessary. It is an update of old sections that were aimed at the same nefarious activity: the spreading of pornographic material that exploits children.

What on earth could be more important to us in the Chamber? In a time of heightened awareness of families and the need to protect people, it is exactly the type of legislation we should be charged with.

As has been mentioned by previous speakers, the sections of the bill that define age of consent are cause for concern for me and members of the coalition. There is an anomaly in Bill C-15A whereby a person under the age of 14 could be victimized. We should consider raising the age of consent to 16. This would make it more consistent with other elements of the criminal code. I believe in fairness that the minister and her department are open to doing that. To that end we hope to see more legislation forthcoming in the days and weeks to come.

Section 8 of the bill would create the offence of luring on the Internet whereby any person commits an offence who communicates by means of a computer with individuals under the age of 18. There is an attempt to make the legislation more in line and consistent.

One area that causes me concern, Mr. Speaker, is the area that pertains to section 690 of the criminal code, a section with which you would be familiar from your previous incarnation as a lawyer. Miscarriages of justice can result in terrible atrocities. In Canada there have been such atrocities in the cases of Mr. Morin, Mr. Milgaard and others who are still out there.

One that comes immediately to mind is the saga of Steven Truscott. There is a recent book about the issue by Julian Sher called Until You Are Dead: Steven Truscott's Long Ride into History . I believe there will be a section 690 application forthcoming to the minister to deal with this case. Section 690 would not be amended in any great way by the current legislation. It would still permit the minister to have final say in these matters.

We are about to begin question period. I hope to have an opportunity to continue my remarks at the close of question period.

[Criminal Code, October 17th, 2001]

Uncle Henry's rifle.

[Foreign Affairs, October 17th, 2001]

Mr. Speaker, Canada is the only G-7 nation that does not have a foreign intelligence agency and since 1993 CSIS has been downsized significantly. If the solicitor general does not know that he should. We need a greater international understanding of external threats through an increased intelligence gathering capacity.

Could the solicitor general tell the House how many foreign officers trained to collect intelligence are working overseas and how many have cultural awareness, geographic and language skills to integrate into foreign communities?

[Anti-terrorism Act, October 16th, 2001]

Mr. Speaker, a short version of that is more money but when.

Certain provisions of Bill C-36 raised questions regarding the overextension of ministerial discretion. The bill allows the minister to authorize actions which could be subject to abuse. There are broad powers to limit public access and possibly civil rights.

Will the minister commit today to include not only a fixed sunset clause but also an oversight committee that we likely have in CSIS and the RCMP to avoid political interference and to avoid the possible undermining of political or police impartiality?

[Week Without Violence, October 16th, 2001]

Mr. Speaker, October 14 to October 20 marks the YWCA's Week Without Violence. Created by the YWCA in 1995, the Week Without Violence now spans over 50 countries and has become part of an international commitment to eradicate violence in all its forms.

This week organizers will be challenging thousands of Canadians across the country to imagine their lives without violence by engaging communities in a variety of activities and dialogues around violence and its prevention.

Last year 33,600 children, youth and adults participated in hundreds of these activities at over 300 schools in 600 communities. With the publicity it received the message of the YWCA's Week Without Violence reached over five million Canadians.

As one of the largest and oldest women's service organizations in Canada, the YWCA is Canada's largest provider of shelters to women and children. It has been its longstanding commitment to bring an end to all forms of violence. I thus encourage all Canadians and parliamentarians to play their part in ensuring that the Week Without Violence will last all year long.

[Anti-terrorism Act, October 16th, 2001]

Mr. Speaker, I have said that the bill in its proper interpretation will not tread into the area of civil disobedience of a peaceful nature and legitimate protests against government activity. I was concerned even prior to the legislation that there is opportunity for political interference. We saw that at APEC. It was clearly identified.

The legislation is aimed more at specific acts of violence meant to disrupt legitimate government activity. There has to be a degree of accountability for it to work. We will have an opportunity to hear from groups that will be affected.

I do not believe it is ever legitimate for college students who are engaged in a peaceful demonstration of sorts to be subjected to violence themselves. Violence will not solve any problem in this instance. However, when an individual goes out and deliberately engages in dangerous acts such as throwing a firebomb or carrying a weapon, that type of activity should be and is covered by the legislation. I am hoping it will be implemented in a reasonable fashion.

[Anti-terrorism Act, October 16th, 2001]

Mr. Speaker, I agree that currently our committee process is somewhat flawed and there is a need to re-examine it. In the short term we will not be able to reconstruct our committees in a way that will address the concerns my colleague raised.

However, we are dealing with a very specific legislative response to a terrorist act and there is a need to fill legislative gaps. The committee structure could have been expanded to envelope some of the more critical elements of terrorism including immigration and the concerns around border security. All these issues unfortunately will not be touched upon in the current legislation but I suspect there will be future legislation.

I am concerned about public knowledge of the bill. It is not currently available on the Internet. The information commissioner does not have a copy. I am sure my friend opposite would share those concerns. Members of the public will have to be given a certain amount of information so that they may digest the impact of the bill, both good and bad. Committees do not always allow for that to happen.

Committees will be televised in this instance which will provide Canadians with a greater opportunity to see the details of the legislation. We will have to re-examine how these committees work in the future because they have been abused by the government. They have been controlled to a far larger extent than they should be.

Individual members, both on the government and the opposition sides, should be encouraged. A lot of talent is being overlooked and ignored as a result of the way the current committee structure works.

[Anti-terrorism Act, October 16th, 2001]

Mr. Speaker, I agree that a legislative sunset clause, particularly for these provisions, many of which arguably infringe on the area of human rights and freedoms, mobility and protection from police powers, should be re-examined and put through the rigours of a re-examination in four to five years or basically the life of this government.

As demonstrated by the events of September 11, things changed dramatically. They changed for the worst on that date. That is not to say that they could not improve in the future with some hope and optimism. To that end, if we are living in a safer, gentler world in years to come there may be a need to pull back some of these provisions. That is not the case now with this heightened sense of awareness of terrorism.

There should be a sunset clause, particularly for some of these provisions. I hope we will have an opportunity to examine that issue in committee. I suspect that there is some willingness and some openness on the part of the government to do just that.

[Anti-terrorism Act, October 16th, 2001]

Mr. Speaker, I know my learned colleague has a longstanding interest in human rights and protecting the public when it comes to access to information. Yes, I believe this legislation would very much envelope acts of violence and where the requisite mental element exists for actions that are intended to clearly put people's lives in danger.

The government in its wisdom has brought forward a bill that is sufficiently broad to include that activity. Whether it is someone from another country perpetrating an act of violence of the magnitude that we saw on September 11, or whether it is an individual who purposely prepares a weapon or a bomb or engages in a dangerous act, that in my view is terrorism. It is a threat to public security and it has to be dealt with in the harshest and most just but swiftest fashion. I agree that this definition would encompass that type of activity.