Bill C-14, Bail and Sentencing Reform Act · Senate amendments · now law Where it stands →
What the law does
The law changes bail and sentencing rules in the Criminal Code, the Youth Criminal Justice Act, and the National Defence Act. It places the burden on people accused of certain violent offences, car theft, or home break-ins to show why they should be released on bail. It also adds new aggravating factors for sentencing repeat violent offenders and those who target first responders, and restricts conditional sentences for sexual assault. The law makes other changes to youth justice rules and military justice.
The usual mix, except that they lose points less than most for Motive imputedHidden agencyMockery
Kevin Lamoureux, Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
LiberalLib
“Our goal is to protect victims and make our communities safer. This is why our party is making crime laws a top priority.”
“Mr. Speaker, the core message I want to get across is that the motivating factor goes beyond the election platform; it is all about victims and making our communities safer. That is where I believe the thrust has come from in terms of pushing forward what is likely the most aggressive legislative agenda dealing with crime in generations. I can assure members that every Liberal member of Parliament sees this as a top priority. It is all part of building Canada strong.”
Official Hansard
Mr. Speaker, the core message I want to get across is that the motivating factor goes beyond the election platform; it is all about victims and making our communities safer. That is where I believe the thrust has come from in terms of pushing forward what is likely the most aggressive legislative agenda dealing with crime in generations. I can assure members that every Liberal member of Parliament sees this as a top priority. It is all part of building Canada strong.
“The Bloc Québécois does not want longer back-to-back jail sentences for crimes that do not hurt people, like car theft. Studies show these longer sentences do not stop criminals. I want to know what the member thinks about this.”
“Mr. Speaker, the Bloc Québécois is not happy with the addition of consecutive sentences for offences that do not constitute crimes against the person. For example, while it is true that car theft is a major problem, we do not believe that consecutive sentences will actually deter criminals. Several studies have proven that. I would like my colleague’s thoughts on that.”
Official Hansard
Mr. Speaker, the Bloc Québécois is not happy with the addition of consecutive sentences for offences that do not constitute crimes against the person. For example, while it is true that car theft is a major problem, we do not believe that consecutive sentences will actually deter criminals. Several studies have proven that. I would like my colleague’s thoughts on that.
The usual mix, except that they lose points less than most for Motive imputedHidden agencyMockery
Kevin Lamoureux, Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
LiberalLib
“Stopping crime like car theft is a job for both the federal government and the provinces. Manitoba solved a big car theft problem years ago by working together. Our government is changing the law to help, but we still need to work with the provinces and the police to keep people safe.”
“Mr. Speaker, I think we need to recognize that justice is a shared responsibility, and I will use the example of auto thefts. Jurisdiction is with both the federal government and the provincial government, and we must not underestimate the importance of law enforcement. In Manitoba, I think it was from about 2004 to 2007, we had the highest per capita vehicle theft rate by a long shot. While we were able to work with Ottawa, it was the province and MPI that were able to resolve the situation. The short of it is, we recognize that the federal government has to play an important role. This government, under this Prime Minister, is doing exactly that by demonstrating leadership and bringing in the legislative changes that are necessary. We need to continue now to work with our provincial and law enforcement agencies to make our communities safer.”
Mr. Speaker, I think we need to recognize that justice is a shared responsibility, and I will use the example of auto thefts. Jurisdiction is with both the federal government and the provincial government, and we must not underestimate the importance of law enforcement. In Manitoba, I think it was from about 2004 to 2007, we had the highest per capita vehicle theft rate by a long shot. While we were able to work with Ottawa, it was the province and MPI that were able to resolve the situation. The short of it is, we recognize that the federal government has to play an important role. This government, under this Prime Minister, is doing exactly that by demonstrating leadership and bringing in the legislative changes that are necessary. We need to continue now to work with our provincial and law enforcement agencies to make our communities safer.
“I want the House to pass this bill quickly. It will keep violent repeat offenders in jail instead of letting them out on bail. It also creates harsher sentences for crimes against first responders, car theft, and sexual assault.”
“Mr. Speaker, it is a pleasure to rise to speak to Bill C-14, as well as the Senate amendments that have come forward. I will start off by talking about the importance of passing this legislation quickly and getting it into law. I will then give a bit of detail about the Senate amendments and my thoughts on those before I sum it up. First of all, I want to say that this is not a partisan issue. Every Canadian wants to be safe in their community and safe in their home. It does not matter which party we come from; we all think that. Every Canadian is tired of seeing violent repeat offenders out on the streets when they should be behind bars. In my riding of Sarnia—Lambton—Bkejwanong, we had a very tragic incident happen recently at Lambton College, where an innocent student, Dane Nisbet, was shot by someone who has been involved in crime previously, and he died. He was 20 years old. People in my community are outraged now because the perpetrator has been let out on bail. This is why Bill C-14 needs to go into play. Bill C-14 would prevent these things from happening, and I will talk a little about how it would do that. Over the last few years, there have been unintended consequences, from Bill C-75, for example, with the principle of restraint. The principle of restraint was making judges think that they had to let people out at the earliest possible opportunity with the least possible punishment. Bill C-14 would actually clarify this. It would clarify how police and courts apply the principle of restraint to specify that it does not mean automatic release where detention is justified to protect public safety. This is an incredibly important part of Bill C-14 and something that we definitely are going to need. Also, Bill C-14 would add aggravating factors, making sure we do not have sentences that are too light in extreme cases. When the offence is committed against victims who are first responders, it would be an aggravating factor in sentencing, as well as repeat violent offenders with previous convictions within the last five years and organized retail theft. I heard a question earlier about auto theft. This kind of thing would be an aggravating factor in sentencing, as well as offences interfering with essential infrastructures, which we see in copper theft and some of the drug-trafficking offences. All of those things are very good measures. One of the other things that was an unintended consequence of Bill C-5 was that house arrest was being allowed for perpetrators of sexual assault. That would be reversed here in Bill C-14. That is a very good measure. It is something that is needed, and we heard lots about that. The other thing this bill would do is align to the military justice system to make sure both systems are consistent. With respect to the Senate amendments that have come forward, some are good, and some we would prefer not to have. I think the one that would allow the measures for the youth justice system to come into force, that would allow some time to get that right, would be very, very important. I have heard discussion from the Conservatives today that they do not like the measures that the Senate has submitted on sureties, but one of the things that Conservatives continue not to understand is that when an independent court is making a decision, it has to have discretion. We have seen mandatory minimum penalties fail at the Supreme Court because they do not give the judges discretion and the judges are independent. Therefore, this is an important principle that we see represented here. It is only part of the story. When it comes to preventing violent crime in our neighbourhoods and in our communities, we have to have the laws, and then we have to enforce the laws. There is an opportunity to do a better job on enforcement. We have to also look at where we are going to put the people. A lot of times, people are being released because there is no room in the prisons. That is a shared responsibility, federally and provincially, and something that we need to look at. However, if we can get the deterrence to crime right and enforce the law, we are going to see fewer people in the prisons, which is what we saw previously. That, in a nutshell, is why it is critical that we get this legislation passed. The sooner it is passed and gets royal assent, the sooner it would get into law. Then we can stop seeing these repeat and violent offenders out on the streets and getting sentences that I consider to be inadequate. I am very proud of the government for the measures that it put in place, and not just Bill C‑14, as Bill C‑16 is exactly what we asked for at the status of women committee, which I am a part of. It addresses coercive control, femicides, deepfakes and a lot of the things that we brought forward. I think the government is serious about addressing crime in this country.”
Official Hansard
Mr. Speaker, it is a pleasure to rise to speak to Bill C-14, as well as the Senate amendments that have come forward. I will start off by talking about the importance of passing this legislation quickly and getting it into law. I will then give a bit of detail about the Senate amendments and my thoughts on those before I sum it up. First of all, I want to say that this is not a partisan issue. Every Canadian wants to be safe in their community and safe in their home. It does not matter which party we come from; we all think that. Every Canadian is tired of seeing violent repeat offenders out on the streets when they should be behind bars. In my riding of Sarnia—Lambton—Bkejwanong, we had a very tragic incident happen recently at Lambton College, where an innocent student, Dane Nisbet, was shot by someone who has been involved in crime previously, and he died. He was 20 years old. People in my community are outraged now because the perpetrator has been let out on bail. This is why Bill C-14 needs to go into play. Bill C-14 would prevent these things from happening, and I will talk a little about how it would do that. Over the last few years, there have been unintended consequences, from Bill C-75, for example, with the principle of restraint. The principle of restraint was making judges think that they had to let people out at the earliest possible opportunity with the least possible punishment. Bill C-14 would actually clarify this. It would clarify how police and courts apply the principle of restraint to specify that it does not mean automatic release where detention is justified to protect public safety. This is an incredibly important part of Bill C-14 and something that we definitely are going to need. Also, Bill C-14 would add aggravating factors, making sure we do not have sentences that are too light in extreme cases. When the offence is committed against victims who are first responders, it would be an aggravating factor in sentencing, as well as repeat violent offenders with previous convictions within the last five years and organized retail theft. I heard a question earlier about auto theft. This kind of thing would be an aggravating factor in sentencing, as well as offences interfering with essential infrastructures, which we see in copper theft and some of the drug-trafficking offences. All of those things are very good measures. One of the other things that was an unintended consequence of Bill C-5 was that house arrest was being allowed for perpetrators of sexual assault. That would be reversed here in Bill C-14. That is a very good measure. It is something that is needed, and we heard lots about that. The other thing this bill would do is align to the military justice system to make sure both systems are consistent. With respect to the Senate amendments that have come forward, some are good, and some we would prefer not to have. I think the one that would allow the measures for the youth justice system to come into force, that would allow some time to get that right, would be very, very important. I have heard discussion from the Conservatives today that they do not like the measures that the Senate has submitted on sureties, but one of the things that Conservatives continue not to understand is that when an independent court is making a decision, it has to have discretion. We have seen mandatory minimum penalties fail at the Supreme Court because they do not give the judges discretion and the judges are independent. Therefore, this is an important principle that we see represented here. It is only part of the story. When it comes to preventing violent crime in our neighbourhoods and in our communities, we have to have the laws, and then we have to enforce the laws. There is an opportunity to do a better job on enforcement. We have to also look at where we are going to put the people. A lot of times, people are being released because there is no room in the prisons. That is a shared responsibility, federally and provincially, and something that we need to look at. However, if we can get the deterrence to crime right and enforce the law, we are going to see fewer people in the prisons, which is what we saw previously. That, in a nutshell, is why it is critical that we get this legislation passed. The sooner it is passed and gets royal assent, the sooner it would get into law. Then we can stop seeing these repeat and violent offenders out on the streets and getting sentences that I consider to be inadequate. I am very proud of the government for the measures that it put in place, and not just Bill C‑14, as Bill C‑16 is exactly what we asked for at the status of women committee, which I am a part of. It addresses coercive control, femicides, deepfakes and a lot of the things that we brought forward. I think the government is serious about addressing crime in this country.
“The member used to say that Liberal bail policies make our communities less safe and help criminals instead of victims. She was right, and those policies have not changed. She also used to say that members who switch parties should let their voters decide if they still want them. I want to know when she will ask her voters to elect her again.”
“Mr. Speaker, I listened closely to my colleague’s speech. She talked about unintended consequences a lot, which was a bit strange for somebody who, just months ago, told Canadians that it was the Liberals making her communities less safe and that it was their “bail not jail” policies and legislation that favoured criminals over victims. In fact, that member said that criminals are making out very well under the Liberals. She was right. These policies have not changed. The only thing that has changed is where she sits. She also said that MPs who cross the floor should go back to their constituents for a fresh mandate. If she truly believes the principles she spent years defending, including that Liberal soft-on-crime policies have made her community less safe, when is she going to go back to constituents and find out who they want to elect to represent them?”
Official Hansard
Mr. Speaker, I listened closely to my colleague’s speech. She talked about unintended consequences a lot, which was a bit strange for somebody who, just months ago, told Canadians that it was the Liberals making her communities less safe and that it was their “bail not jail” policies and legislation that favoured criminals over victims. In fact, that member said that criminals are making out very well under the Liberals. She was right. These policies have not changed. The only thing that has changed is where she sits. She also said that MPs who cross the floor should go back to their constituents for a fresh mandate. If she truly believes the principles she spent years defending, including that Liberal soft-on-crime policies have made her community less safe, when is she going to go back to constituents and find out who they want to elect to represent them?
“My views have not changed, and the Liberals welcomed me into their team. We must pass this bill because it fixes problems in the justice system.”
“Mr. Speaker, I would thank the member opposite for that question, but I do not think it was a very good question. What I would say is that everything I have said is on the public record. The Prime Minister is aware of what I think. All of the members of the Liberal caucus are, and they welcomed me, with my Conservative views, into this caucus. I am very proud to be part of this team. My view has not changed. As I said, the things that were done that undermine the justice system are being repaired here in Bill C‑14, and that is why it is critical that we get this legislation passed.”
Mr. Speaker, I would thank the member opposite for that question, but I do not think it was a very good question. What I would say is that everything I have said is on the public record. The Prime Minister is aware of what I think. All of the members of the Liberal caucus are, and they welcomed me, with my Conservative views, into this caucus. I am very proud to be part of this team. My view has not changed. As I said, the things that were done that undermine the justice system are being repaired here in Bill C‑14, and that is why it is critical that we get this legislation passed.
