Robert Chisholm, Dartmouth Cole Harbour MP
A lot has been said and written about the Conservative government's omnibus crime bill, C-10. I would like to take some time to offer my party's opinion on this massive piece of legislation.
Bill C-10 is a collection of nine different bills from previous Parliaments, a number of which are not related to the Criminal Code or the Justice Department mandate. Public safety is a top priority for my New Democrat colleagues and me and while there are measures in this bill, like tough new laws on Internet luring of children, that we fully support, there are also those which will do nothing to make our streets and communities safer.
We proposed to Parliament that the bill be divided and that the parts which would meaningfully tackle public safety and help protect our children could be passed at all stages immediately. Unfortunately, the Conservative government rejected our proposals and has rammed an uncosted bill, that as is presently worded could have child molesters getting lighter sentences than individuals who grow six or more pot plants, through the House of Commons. We don't think this makes sense or makes our communities safer.
Without a doubt C-10 will be expensive for taxpayers and the provinces, but despite our efforts the government has refused to be open about the costs of this legislation. We have gone so far as to ask the Parliamentary Budget Officer to look into the expense of these changes. He has estimated it will cost the federal government $5-billion over five years and the provinces and territories somewhere between $6-billion and $10-billion.
In addition to being expensive, the majority of the crime bill is also not based on evidence. We know from studies and testimony from victims and those who work in the area of criminal justice that increased use of mandatory minimum sentences and building more expensive mega prisons do not make our streets safer - greater preventative measures and more police on our streets do.
Canada's crime rate continues to fall while our unemployment rate is on the rise. The government should be focusing on jobs and not jeopardizing our economy by increasing our debt and deficit all in the pursuit of a wrong-headed notion that says putting more people in prison and building more jails will make us safer. The Americans tried that very same approach. It failed, and they are, in fact, now trying to undo the damage it has caused.
Rest assured we will continue to make public safety a top priority and push the Conservative government to act on jobs instead of expensive and unsubstantiated legislation.
