Ethics  Mr. Speaker, as I just said in French, the prosecution in question is being handled by the Public Prosecution Service of Canada, which operates independently from the Department of Justice and my office. Counsel to the Attorney General of Canada is fulfilling all of its obligati

Ethics  Mr. Speaker, as the hon. member well knows, according to the sub judice principle, best articulated by former member of Parliament, Peter Van Loan, members are expected to refrain from discussing matters before the courts or under judicial consideration in order to protect those

Justice committee  There was a specific concern raised by one of our colleagues in the House of Commons about the use of the word “baiting”, and the response that came back seemed quite unequivocal, that the word “baiting” in English in this context would only be taken to mean what was done in anim

Justice committee  Frankly, I'm not a legislative drafter.

Justice committee  I have similar knowledge of English and French as you have, and I don't know if there's a technical meaning to “assists at” in English in a legislative drafting sense.

Justice committee  We could provide that answer to you, if that would be fine.

Justice committee  Thank you. It's always a pleasure.

Justice committee  Right. I think your point is well taken. I think the wording of the act covers all of the participants and, therefore, meets the concern that you're raising.

Justice committee  Obviously, I share your concern. I won't say we're stuck with this bill. I think this is a good bill.

Justice committee  That is indeed correct. I just wouldn't characterize a good first step as being stuck with something. I think it's a positive step moving forward. I know my predecessor committed at the time we were discussing Bill C-246 to a more comprehensive review of animal protection legisla

Justice committee  Well, I'm going to commit to continuing that process.

Justice committee  Absolutely. Is that the dog fighting in Ontario report?

Justice committee  Absolutely.

Justice committee  With respect to the bestiality provisions, my sense is that the challenges would be the same as with any sexual assault provision where you have a vulnerable party. Vulnerable parties are often not people who readily go to a police station and file a report. You're talking about

Justice committee  Thank you for that question and thank you for your good wishes. I think we have a pretty good bill moving forward. Your task as committee members is to give it a good hard look.