“Mr. Speaker, I will try to restore some calm because I am ashamed right now. Unfortunately, I am reliving a scene I witnessed at the Standing Committee on the Status of Women, where, instead of listening to victims, my Liberal and Conservative colleagues were bickering back and forth. The victims left in tears, and I am reliving that moment. Members on both sides can laugh and argue about this, but Bill C-16 addresses an issue that is far too important to victims for me to be witnessing what I am seeing right now. I feel ashamed on behalf of victims and survivors. I would like to come back to something. During the study of Bill C-16, the Conservatives filibustered while the Bloc Québécois was trying to be constructive and propose amendments. For example, we consulted legal experts to try to fix a mistake in this bill. The Bloc Québécois wanted to include provisions regarding an objective test. Such provisions would have enabled the judge to take into account the full context, the abuser’s history, coercive behaviour and threats against loved ones and pets. That is what the offence itself does. However, even though the amendments we proposed were logical, the Liberals voted them down. I would suggest that everyone calm right down because, seriously, the way we are handling Bill C‑16 right now is not at all in the public interest. Let us keep in mind that the purpose of Bill C‑16 is to find real solutions so there will be no more victims.”
Statement grade
B
The average of Signal, Relevance, Respect and Clarity is 86. The grade is held to 76, 30 above Signal.
76 / 100, held down by Signal
A score under 50 is red. Choose a measurement to see where it lost points and why; choose it again to clear.
Positioning 42%Claims 52%Procedure 6%
This view breaks the statement into its steps and names what each one does.
Mr. Speaker, Positioning · 44 wordsI can tell the member opposite from the Bloc that the motivating factor for the Government of Canada, and I would suggest all members of the Liberal caucus, is in fact the issue of victims and how we can deal with and support victims.PositioningClaims · 5 wordsThat is within Bill C-16, Procedure · 8 wordsand I can give some examples of that.ProcedurePositioning · 17 wordsThere is also providing the communities we represent a sense of security.Those are the motivating factors.PositioningClaims · 71 wordsSpecifically, to give a couple of examples, this legislation would provide victims with information proactively, without requiring formal requests, 1and would expand access to testimonial aids for victims of violent and intimate partner offences.2There are a number of actions within Bill C-16 that we put in place because we can understand and we can appreciate the issues victims have to deal with, which often go on for years on end.
