October 2011 Parliamentary Report
SAFE STREETS AND COMMUNITIES ACT (BILL C-10)
This legislation brings modest and sensible reforms to the Criminal Code that will balance the rights of the public and victims of crime with the rehabilitation and re-integration of offenders. This has been a priority for our Government since first elected. It remains a top priority today.
PAST EFFORTS
Past efforts to pass legislation resulted in many hours of Committee consultation, witness testimony and detailed study only to have the Bills die on the Order Paper when Parliament was dissolved with the last election. This Bill returns all the individual Bills, into which so many hours of work went, back to the House as one comprehensive piece of legislation.
We’re acting on the strong mandate we received on May 2nd. We promised to pass these reforms in a comprehensive bill within one hundred sitting days and we will do just that.
MAJOR ELEMENTS
The components of the Act include:
• increased penalties for sexual offences against children,
• tougher sentences for organized drug crime,
• Sébastien’s law: to better protect the public from violent and repeat young offenders,
• ending house arrest for serious crimes,
• providing victims with the right to attend parole hearings,
• eliminating pardons for serious crimes,
• additional discretion for the Minister of Public Safety when considering the return of Canadian offenders from abroad,
• increased accountability for victims of terrorism, and
• increased protection from human trafficking and exploitation for vulnerable immigrants.
OF PARTICULAR NOTE - YOUTH CRIMINAL JUSTICE ACT (YCJA) AMENDMENTS
These provisions will give our judges more options in dealing with the worst offenders and worst offences. For example, judges will now have the option of pre-trial detention for out of control youth who continue to commit offences, even if they have not already completed trial on any charges. In another example, conduct which created a risk of serious injury to others will be subject to the same range of potential sentencing as other violent offences, whether the risk is intentional or merely reckless.
These sections also preserve and enhance the YCJA emphasis on rehabilitation, reintegration and the diminished culpability of young persons
CONCLUSION
This Bill passed second reading and has been referred to the Justice and Human Rights Committee, of which I am a member. We will hear witnesses on aspects of the Bill, particularly measures not previously studied, and report back to Parliament.