Health committee  Luckily, when faced with what seems like an impossible task, our community can rise to the challenge. In the early 2000s, our city was plagued with arson and auto theft, and we came together to knock both back. We know how to get things done by working together. That's why I wanted to appear before this parliamentary committee—to make the case for us to better coordinate our energies and our actions among all three levels of government.

Criminal Code  A lighter penalty would be possible for those convicted of bribing municipal officials, insider trading, forging currency, using libel for extortion, fraud through the use of arson, or even illegally influencing political appointments. Perhaps most shocking is the list of violent and gang-related crimes that would be eligible for a summary conviction: infanticide, hiding the body of a child, obstructing or assaulting an officiating clergyman, abduction of children under the ages of 16 and 14, conspiracy and participating in criminal gang activities.

Criminal Code  Through the bill, the Liberals would reduce penalties for the following crimes: participating in criminal organizations, various acts of corruption, prison breach, impaired driving, abduction, human trafficking, forced marriage, and arson, just to name a few of many in the bill. Participation in terrorist activities and advocating genocide were deleted from this list only because a Conservative amendment was accepted at committee.

Criminal Code  However, here in our own country, we have decided that the penalty for forced marriage is going to be a fine or a less-than-two-years summary conviction. It is ridiculous. Arson, for a number of reasons, is now on this list and is not considered that serious when in fact it drives up the cost of insurance and it takes people's homes. It is obviously a serious crime.

Criminal Code  The bill also brings in softer sentencing for, among other things, advocating genocide, participating in activities of criminal organizations, arson for fraudulent purposes, human trafficking-related offences and material benefit for sexual services. Listening to the list of some of these offences on which the Liberals are going soft, one really cannot help but wonder if some of the stakeholders who were consulted on the bill were actually organized crime leaders.

Criminal Code  Would it be for impaired driving causing bodily harm or death? Would it be for extortion by libel, or arson by negligence or participation in activities of a criminal organization? For which of these offences, which would have their sentences reduced, has he heard from his constituents that they want these sentences reduced?

Criminal Code  I think most Canadians would agree with us that these are very serious offences. Some others are marriage to someone under the age of 16, arson for fraudulent purpose and participation in the activities of a criminal organization. The government has backed down on a couple of those issues. They are the ones related to terrorism and genocide.

Criminal Code  We are talking about administering date rape drugs, kidnapping a minor under the age of 16, kidnapping a minor under the age of 14, human trafficking and arson for a fraudulent purpose. The government is moving ahead with reclassifying those offences. What would be the effect of reclassification? Instead of a maximum sentence of up to 10 years, the maximum would be two years less a day if the accused were prosecuted by way of summary conviction.

Justice committee  This is another amendment on reclassification. Bill C-75 would make the serious indictable offence of arson for a fraudulent purpose a hybrid offence. It's very difficult to understand why such a serious offence would be treated as a hybrid offence, and this amendment would keep it as solely indictable.

Justice committee  Chair, again this is an amendment dealing with reclassification in Bill C-75. It seeks to maintain the offence of arson by negligence as a solely indictable offence.

National Defence Act  This would include participating in the activity of a terrorist group, infanticide, a couple of impaired driving offences causing bodily harm, abducting a person under the age of 14, forced marriage, advocating genocide, extortion by libel, arson for fraudulent purposes, and possession of property obtained by crime. They also want sentences reduced for participation in the activities of a criminal organization. With all of the challenges we are facing, these Liberals want to reduce sentence for those participating in gang activities.

Justice committee  Some of the proposed changes are to offences that include acts related to terrorism, assaults, impaired driving, arson, human trafficking and much more. These lower sentences send the wrong message to criminals, victims, law-abiding Canadians and society. For summary convictions that fall under the jurisdiction of the federal government, section 787 of the Criminal Code of Canada specifies that unless another punishment is provided for by law, the maximum penalty for a summary conviction is a sentence of six months of imprisonment, a fine of $5,000 or both.

Justice committee  I'm speaking specifically today to the reclassification of offences, the hybridization of 136 serious crimes, crimes that are identified as indictable offences such as terrorism, assault with a weapon, arson, advocating genocide, human trafficking, abduction of children, and that's just to name a very few. The sentences for indictable offences range from two to 10 years, but when changed to summary convictions, sentences would be reduced to a maximum of two years with the real possibility of a mere fine.

Bill C-75 An Act to amend the Criminal Code, the Youth Criminal Justice Act and other Acts and to make consequential amendments to other Acts

Bill C-75 If you have any questions or comments regarding the accessibility of this publication, please contact us at accessible@parl.gc.ca. First Reading Second Reading Third Reading Royal Assent LEGISinfo Bilingual view XML PDF Skip to Document Navigation Skip to Document Content ENGLISHSUMMARYSUMMARY1 Criminal Code1 Criminal Code1 Amendments to the Act1 Amendments to the Act354 Transitional Provisions354 Transitional Provisions361 Youth Criminal Justice Act361 Youth Criminal Justice Act361 Amendments to the Act361 Amendments to the Act384 Transitional Provision384 Transitional Provision385 Controlled Drugs and Substances Act385 Controlled Drugs and Substances Act386 An Act to amend the Criminal Code (exploitation and trafficking in persons)386 An Act to amend the Criminal Code (exploitation and trafficking in persons)387 Consequential Amendments387 Consequential Amendments387 Competition Act387 Competition Act388 Identification of Criminals Act388 Identification of Criminals Act389 Parliament of Canada Act389 Parliament of Canada Act391 Supreme Court Act391 Supreme Court Act392 Customs Act392 Customs Act393 Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters Act393 Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters Act394 Corrections and Conditional Release Act394 Corrections and Conditional Release Act396 Contraventions Act396 Contraventions Act399 Crimes Against Humanity and War Crimes Act399 Crimes Against Humanity and War Crimes Act400 Species at Risk Act400 Species at Risk Act400.1 Cannabis Act400.1 Cannabis Act401 Coordinating Amendments401 Coordinating Amendments405 Coming into Force405 Coming into Force First Session, Forty-second Parliament, 64-65-66-67-68 Elizabeth II, 2015-2016-2017-2018-2019 STATUTES OF CANADA 2019 CHAPTER 25 An Act to amend the Criminal Code, the Youth Criminal Justice Act and other Acts and to make consequential amendments to other Acts ASSENTED TO June 21, 2019 BILL C-75 SUMMARY This enactment amends the Criminal Code to, among other things, (a) modernize and clarify interim release provisions to simplify the forms of release that may be imposed on an accused, incorporate a principle of restraint and require that particular attention be given to the circumstances of Aboriginal accused and accused from vulnerable populations when making interim release decisions, and provide more onerous interim release requirements for offences involving violence against an intimate partner; (b) provide for a judicial referral hearing to deal with administration of justice offences involving a failure to comply with conditions of release or failure to appear as required; (c) abolish peremptory challenges of jurors, modify the process of challenging a juror for cause so that a judge makes the determination of whether a ground of challenge is true, and allow a judge to direct that a juror stand by for reasons of maintaining public confidence in the administration of justice; (d) increase the maximum term of imprisonment for repeat offences involving intimate partner violence and provide that abuse of an intimate partner is an aggravating factor on sentencing; (e) restrict the availability of a preliminary inquiry to offences punishable by imprisonment for a term of 14 years or more and strengthen the justice’s powers to limit the issues explored and witnesses to be heard at the inquiry; (f) hybridize most indictable offences punishable by a maximum penalty of 10 years or less, increase the default maximum penalty to two years less a day of imprisonment for summary conviction offences and extend the limitation period for summary conviction offences to 12 months; (g) remove the requirement for judicial endorsement for the execution of certain out-of-province warrants and authorizations, expand judicial case management powers, allow receiving routine police evidence in writing, consolidate provisions relating to the powers of the Attorney General and allow increased use of technology to facilitate remote attendance by any person in a proceeding; (h) re-enact the victim surcharge regime and provide the court with the discretion to waive a victim surcharge if the court is satisfied that the victim surcharge would cause the offender undue hardship or would be disproportionate to the gravity of the offence or the degree of responsibility of the offender; and (i) remove passages and repeal provisions that have been ruled unconstitutional by the Supreme Court of Canada, repeal section 159 of the Act and provide that no person shall be convicted of any historical offence of a sexual nature unless the act that constitutes the offence would constitute an offence under the Criminal Code if it were committed on the day on which the charge was laid.

Justice committee  That is the issue, and that is what is so concerning when we're talking about offences such as impaired driving causing bodily harm, kidnapping a minor, arson for fraudulent purposes, and I could go on. I want to ask you, Madam Minister, about some of the choices that were made in terms of listing, through Bill C-75, offences as hybrid offences.