Discussion · Government Orders
Kevin Lamoureux Liberal
“This bill brings back many mandatory minimum prison sentences that the courts struck down. It adds special rules so these sentences will now follow the Charter of Rights. The Conservatives are just making excuses to oppose it.”
“Mr. Speaker, the reality is that through Bill C-16, we would see the reinstatement of a number of mandatory minimums that were actually ruled out of order with respect to Canada’s Charter of Rights. As a result, Bill C-16 would reinstate many of those mandatory minimums. It puts in the exceptional circumstances clause in order to protect the integrity of the laws so that they would not continue to be ruled as being against the charter. In other words, it would make them charter-compliant. It seems to me that the Conservative Party is just trying to find an excuse to justify its position.”
Official Hansard
Mr. Speaker, the reality is that through Bill C-16, we would see the reinstatement of a number of mandatory minimums that were actually ruled out of order with respect to Canada’s Charter of Rights. As a result, Bill C-16 would reinstate many of those mandatory minimums. It puts in the exceptional circumstances clause in order to protect the integrity of the laws so that they would not continue to be ruled as being against the charter. In other words, it would make them charter-compliant. It seems to me that the Conservative Party is just trying to find an excuse to justify its position.