Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, they are going to regret their applause in a moment, I can assure members, and that is because when the member posed the question, he blamed the principle of restraint. Let me tell members something about the principle of restraint. It is the subject of a change in Bill C-14, the bail and sentencing reform act that the Conservatives have been obstructing for months. Despite calls from…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague for her advocacy for stronger criminal laws to help protect her community. The reason members of her community are commending this bill is that they see the feedback that they provided in the process reflected in the text of the bill. It was through feedback from law enforcement that we figured out how to best deal with violent repeat criminals when …
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Mr. Speaker, dangerous people who commit serious crimes should not be allowed to roam freely in our streets where they can reoffend. Now—
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Mr. Speaker, after months and months of Conservatives obstructing bail reform in this country, we have finally seen a spirit of collaboration. My only hope is that the spirit their leader seemed to embody during his opening remarks of this session will be what carries the day, instead of the nonsense we are seeing today in the House.
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Mr. Speaker, extortion is a real and pressing problem in this country, and that member has an opportunity to do something about it. There are laws being debated in Parliament right now that would make it harder for people charged with extortion-related offences to be released on bail, that would result in deeper and longer sentences for people who are convicted of extortion and would give new tool…
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Madam Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for his work on issues that are common to this bill, as well as his own private member's bill, which I know are a priority for him. In addition to the measures he referenced, this bill contains certain measures around firearms, including the denial of licences to those who have a history of gender-based violence and the need to return a firearm if a person'…
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Madam Speaker, let me thank my colleague for her tremendous courage in sharing that experience and for her support for the measures included in this bill. The only point of correction I have for her statement is that she cited the tireless work of the minister in this case, but it is the tireless work of survivors and advocates that we have to express our gratitude for. This bill is a result of co…
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Madam Speaker, I would say the short answer is yes. The measures set out in the bill did not happen by accident. We are holding discussions with national organizations and with opposition parties, including the Bloc Québécois critics, who are suggesting ideas, like the one my colleague just put forward to the House. In addition, if members from any party have ideas they would like to suggest, and …
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Madam Speaker, I would first like to say that I disagree with the claim that there have been delays in making appointments. There was a problem for a few years, but over the past two or three years, judicial positions have been filled very quickly and there are not many vacancies in the country right now. To answer my colleague's question, I would say that he is presenting an interesting idea, but…
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moved that Bill C-16, An Act to amend certain Acts in relation to criminal and correctional matters (child protection, gender-based violence, delays and other measures), be read the second time and referred to a committee. Madam Speaker, it is an honour to commence debate on Bill C-16. Before I begin, I want to wish everyone a happy new year. I hope everyone had a restful holiday. It is wonderful …
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Madam Speaker, it is essential that we understand, through the extensive research done by people who have dedicated their lives to discovering the solutions to gender-based violence, particularly in an intimate partner violence context that ends with violence or, potentially, the murder of an innocent person, that there is a pattern of coercive and controlling behaviour that repeats itself time an…
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Mr. Speaker, it is easy for members to make mistakes when reading a question that was handed to them from their party's whip rather than actually doing research to understand the facts on the ground. If the hon. member actually surveyed the statistics on violent crime in Canada, he would see that in the last two years, there has been a reduction of crime in this country. The bills he points to act…
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Mr. Speaker, after several months of obstruction and delay, and getting in the way of measures to improve public safety, my hon. colleague has finally realized that people are seeing that it is he and his colleagues who have been delaying and denying justice, preventing it from advancing in this country. Right now, not only do we have an opportunity to move forward on bail and sentencing reform, b…
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Mr. Speaker, I would remind the hon. member that what he calls Liberal bail is supported by the Canadian Police Association, the Ontario police association, the police chief in my community and the police chief in his community. In fact, when his police chief showed up at committee, he urged all members, including the Conservative Party, to actually accelerate the process. The member is citing rev…
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Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives are now even finding a way to filibuster question period. In all honesty, this is the readiness with which the Conservatives come to this conversation. They will cite heinous crimes to make a political point, but then stall the proceedings to actually advance the laws that police chiefs are asking for, that victims are asking for and that law enforcement from their o…
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Mr. Speaker, me thinks the member doth protest too much. We have watched him and his colleagues filibuster the work of the justice committee for many weeks on end. He says that he is not responsible for it, but it is actually all on video. For hours they go on discussing their preference for puppies or kittens when they in fact could be debating laws that are designed to keep Canadians safe. It is…
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Mr. Speaker, the speed with which the member will cite these kinds of tragic crimes as a political prop is simply beneath this—
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Mr. Speaker, the excuse the Conservatives are using now to prevent us from addressing bail and sentencing is that they will not support measures that are designed to combat hate crimes in this country. We can fight hate. We can keep communities safe. The Conservatives should get out of the way.
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Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my hon. colleague her support in advancing the protecting victims act, which would treat more seriously femicide in this country, which would criminalize coercive control and which would include new higher maximum penalties for a range of sexual offences. In addition, this bill would restore mandatory minimum penalties for a range of sexual crimes and trafficking-relat…
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moved for leave to introduce Bill C-16, An Act to amend certain Acts in relation to criminal and correctional matters (child protection, gender-based violence, delays and other measures). (Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)
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Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the former Conservative shadow minister for economic development in Atlantic Canada for finally being permitted to ask a question about Nova Scotia in the House of Commons. It speaks volumes about the Conservative Party that since the member joined the government, it has yet to replace him and goes without a voice from Atlantic Canada representing the economic interest…
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Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 32(2) I have the honour of tabling, in both official languages, the 2023-2024 annual report from the office of the federal ombudsperson for victims of crime.
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Madam Speaker, the member is talking about the constitutional authority of the Prime Minister. If she actually read the entirety of the section that she is referring to, she would notice that it also gives the constitutional authority to provincial governments to build or not build the infrastructure, the roads, the electricity and the water services that would make it possible to have a pipeline …
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Madam Speaker, when members resort to personal attacks and deal in conspiracy theories, it speaks to a larger issue. The member from the province of Alberta is unable to celebrate the agreement we have achieved. His own premier is celebrating in public about the opportunity to protect the environment and create good jobs. If he will not stand up for Alberta, I, as somebody from the east coast who …
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Madam Speaker, I think my colleague left his tinfoil hat in the men's room before he attended question period today. He is here talking about things that do not matter to the people at home as much as things like doctors, jobs and lower taxes do. Frankly, it is a shame that members of this House of Commons are simply not focused on the priorities of Canadians. The GDP increased 2.6% in the past qu…
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Madam Speaker, the Liberal caucus is only cracking open wide enough to welcome Conservatives to come join us. My hon. colleague would like a date for a pipeline to the west coast. How about May of last year, when the Trans Mountain expansion got new Canadian products to markets, which is driving up the price of Canadian resources? The Conservatives failed to get anything built when they were last …
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Mr. Speaker, it has been interesting to see the Conservatives have a new-found interest in Canada's Constitution. They point out that on occasion the federal government has certain authorities in this respect, but they have not taken care to actually read the entirety of the provision they so routinely cite, which similarly empowers provincial governments to build the infrastructure necessary to o…
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Mr. Speaker, Canadians want this Parliament to take action to combat a rising trend of hate crimes in this country. For our part, we have introduced Bill C-9, the combatting hate act, which seeks to protect Canadians by putting in place criminal penalties for those who would commit hate crimes against people, whether on the doorsteps of our religious institutions or in our communities more broadly…
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Mr. Speaker, I see I have been missed by my friends opposite. I have good news on the subject that grounds the member's question. This is one where I think we can collaborate in a non-partisan way. The government has just tabled legislation, Bill C-14, that includes protections for first responders by adding aggravating factors to the sentences, which would result in harder penalties for those who…
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Madam Speaker, before I address the member's question directly, I want to thank him for the conversations we have had and for his advocacy in advancing some of the specific reforms that are included in this bill. This bill was not necessarily intended to revisit the penalties associated with every offence that exists in the Criminal Code. Of course, serious offences deserve serious penalties, but …
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Madam Speaker, to the extent that we can adopt this bill quickly, we expect to see the positive implications it will have on communities more quickly. What is important, to the member's question, is that I would prefer to do that in a way that is collaborative, not just with members in the House but with different levels of the government and policing associations. The fact that this bill has attr…
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Madam Speaker, I first want to thank my colleague and the Bloc Québécois for their position on this bill. It is very important that we work together to implement the changes it proposes. I will continue in English in order to be more clear. My colleague has raised a very real concern about the number of people in Canada facing pretrial detention. The right answer, in my view, insists that we imple…
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Madam Speaker, it is important that we actually make space for all parties to be heard and to have a conversation. It is essential that we take action to ensure that people who are violent, who commit serious crimes, who are dangerous and who pose a risk to public safety do not continue to find themselves released into our communities if they pose a public safety threat to Canadians. This is going…
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moved that Bill C-14, An Act to amend the Criminal Code, the Youth Criminal Justice Act and the National Defence Act (bail and sentencing), be read the second time and referred to a committee. Mr. Speaker, today we have the opportunity to commence debate on an important bill that would help reinforce and strengthen Canada's criminal laws and promote public safety in communities in every part of th…
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We understand that Canadians have the desire to see the criminal law keep up with the experience in their communities. We do not think it is acceptable that repeat violent offenders would be routinely released after having their bail hearings.
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Madam Speaker, before I address the question directly, I want to thank the hon. member, because I had the opportunity to work with him a number of years ago when he put forward Bill C-211 in our first Parliament, which addressed the need to better support first responders and their mental health in particular. I know he has been a champion for first responders, as I have been, from the day we were…
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Madam Speaker, it is difficult. There are members of the opposition who are seeking to heckle and interrupt. I would very much prefer to have your assistance in keeping this debate civil on matters of such importance.
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Madam Speaker, my friend and colleague from Saanich—Gulf Islands is right that there is a paucity of data when it comes to the administration of bail in Canada. Part of the reason is that we have different provincial systems with different challenges. We have challenges not only as to when a person may be released on bail and how often they may receive bail, but also as to the reasons behind those…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the member for his very important question. Our government is taking action to keep Canadians safe. The bill will have tougher consequences for repeat violent and sex offenders and will end house arrest for sex offenders. The bill also strengthens bail rules to ensure that detention is the default for repeat violent offenders. That would protect victims and our c…
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Mr. Speaker, there is not a less credible voice when it comes to criminal justice reform than the Leader of the Opposition. In the past few weeks, he has called the RCMP “despicable”. He has attacked Crown prosecutors, and he has suggested his political opponents should be jailed. The legislation we tabled today will make it harder to get bail for violent repeat offenders and will strengthen sente…
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moved for leave to introduce Bill C-14, an act to amend the Criminal Code, the Youth Criminal Justice Act and the National Defence Act (bail and sentencing). (Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)
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Mr. Speaker, it is imperative that the federal government defend our charters, defend human rights and protect the Constitution. This case is before the Supreme Court of Canada. It is the federal government's responsibility to intervene to defend the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the Constitution. There are no circumstances under which the federal government would not intervene. It i…
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Mr. Speaker, the federal government did not initiate these proceedings, but we are going to participate in the case before the Supreme Court of Canada. It is very important that the federal government defend the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and defend human rights. After several years, the case has made its way to the Supreme Court of Canada. It is unimaginable to think that the federal…
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Mr. Speaker, when a member chooses to misinterpret a quote for his political position, it is clear he believes his own argument is very weak. The positions that we have advanced in the Supreme Court of Canada are that the notwithstanding clause does not allow governments, federal or provincial, to permanently damage the rights of Canadians, and that it does not permit governments to silence the co…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the member for Hamilton Mountain for her question and for her work on the justice file. A hate crime is targeted not at an individual but at an entire community. With this bill, we are creating a specific offence for hate crimes. We are adding the Supreme Court of Canada's definition of “hatred” to the Criminal Code. Once passed, the law will help condemn hate, p…
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Mr. Speaker, with great respect to my hon. colleague, we have one point of agreement, which is that we need to take action and change Canada's laws to make it harder for violent offenders to be released into our communities. The good news is that the legislation we are putting forward will do exactly that. What I cannot accept is a half-baked idea from the Conservative Party, which seems to have t…
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Mr. Speaker, listening to the member's question, it is clear that there are several deficiencies with the approach that he has put forward. First, Bill C-75 actually made it harder for offenders who have been charged with intimate partner violence to be released on bail. He would make it easier for them to get out into our communities. Second, he claims to have engaged with law enforcement in the …
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Mr. Speaker, every Canadian deserves to be safe and to feel safe in their community. Over the course of the recent federal election campaign, we made several commitments to help reform Canada's bail system and to advance stronger penalties for those who commit serious offences against their fellow Canadians. We are willing to work across the aisle with other members to ensure that we put forward r…
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Mr. Speaker, we need to change Canada's laws to strengthen the bail system. At the same time, we know that the bill before the House today has many flaws. As we go forward, we are not going to take a bill that is completely deficient and does not scratch the surface of what law enforcement, provinces and territories and experts have informed us on over the last few months. Our job is not to pander…
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Mr. Speaker, my hon. colleague's argument is self-defeating. He suggests that one of the laws to blame when it comes to bail should be repealed when in fact that would make it easier for someone charged with intimate partner violence to be released on bail. If someone is going to be critical of a piece of legislation on the floor of the House of Commons, it is a good idea to read it first. We have…
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