Public Safety committee  It's money and control, just as it is in the community. The drug trade in prisons is very lucrative.

Public Safety committee  The institutions, because there are a bunch of men in the same place, tend to be controlled by the stronger, tougher guys, and gangs are in control of a lot of the institutions. The drug trade is a big part of that. A lot of people actually develop substance abuse problems when they come into the prison as a way of coping with the stress. It's a way of sort of blocking out the environment they're dealing with and trying to deal with the stress.

Public Safety committee  To try to link some of these things together, if there is security or intelligence information on an inmate's file that the inmate is somehow involved in the institutional drug trade, that information may result in an involuntary transfer or reclassification in terms of security level. When that happens, we will often get complaints that unsubstantiated allegations are made in the file, resulting in a transfer or a security change, and that has led to a cancellation of a family visit or a denial of other visitors who come into the institution.

Safe Streets and Communities Act  During the review of the bill, the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights heard from the Minister of Justice, the Minister of Public Safety, government officials and a range of stakeholders, including many representatives of law enforcement who repeated over and over again to the committee how long they have been calling for these types of measures. As I have mentioned before, our government recognizes that not all drug offenders and drug trades pose the same risk and danger of violence. That is why Bill C-10 provides a focused and targeted approach. Accordingly, the new proposed penalties would not apply to possession offences, nor would they apply to offences involving all types of drugs.

Justice committee  Woodworth's comments, which he made in his remarks, because I think they merit consideration and a response. He asked whether we are satisfied or not satisfied with what the drug trade has wrought. My answer, simply put, is that I'm not satisfied. He asked whether I, or we, take the position that all drugs should be legalized or that any drug used should not be criminalized.

Public Safety committee  Well, if you're talking about gangs causing violence within the prison, gangs are funded. They live off the drug trade and prostitution. Again, in our correctional centre we've had the occasional gang member, usually somebody who's come to the territory from the south. But for the most part, they're bullies.

Public Safety committee  If it's good information, we would go down and maybe put a link to the individual concerned on the board, and during our staff briefings and our institutional updates, we would advise the staff to monitor that individual closely because we believe he's involved in the institutional drug trade.

Public Safety committee  I would say in terms of both, because there is a direct link, I would suppose, between the ability to tattoo and brand yourself and to show that off, and using that as just a physical symbol of your involvement in the drug trade and organization within the correctional environment. Would that be correct?

Public Safety committee  We need to do that for them. We need to do it because of all of the violence associated with the drug trade inside the facility, like the violence surrounding debts, and the risk to our staff—and to the public if we release people who are still actively addicted. So it's really key that we strive.

Public Safety committee  Would you mind expanding on how in the prison, the chain of financial transactions actually relates to organized crime and gangs, and how the latter account for a significant part of the drug trade within prisons? Can you also expand on how the drugs themselves get into prison via gangs and organized crime?

Public Safety committee  Quoting from that document, it states: ...that even if the flow could be successfully reduced, this increased scarcity would significantly increase the value of drugs and competition for them with the result that the drug trade in prison could become more lucrative, desperate and, therefore, more violent. Mr. Thompson, would you agree with that, or what do you think about this analysis?

Justice committee  In your statement you recognize that the drug trade was a major source of moneys for organized crime, I take it?

Justice committee  Presidential Commission on Organized Crime that was set up under President Reagan also concluded that the major source of income for criminal organizations in the United States was the illegal drug trade. Again, the important point to realize is that it's only a major source of income because of prohibition. In other words, our drug laws actually create the problem.

Justice committee  So the solution would be to legalize the drug trade and completely wipe out organized crime's financing?

Justice committee  It sort of praised it as an alternative to the current prohibitionist war-on-drugs model, which, as you pointed out, has been a colossal failure primarily because of the black market in drugs that it creates, which makes it extremely profitable for insurgent criminal and terrorist groups that benefit from the drug trade.