Justice Denied by Federal Opposition Parties

October 18, 2006

Think back to the federal election campaign this past winter. National polls indicated that Canadians were growing increasingly fed up with crime and that they were responding positively to the Conservative Party’s comprehensive package of justice reforms.

Suddenly, the Liberals launched frantic attempts to appear tough on crime as well. The same party that was responsible over a 12-year period for defending judicial loopholes that keep some of society’s most dangerous offenders out of jail actually tried to convince Canadians that it was going to be the party to tackle crime.

It got even more surreal when, after the horrific Boxing Day shootings on the streets of downtown Toronto, even the New Democrats jumped on the tough-on-crime band wagon. Jack Layton lamented about the scourge of crime in Canada and the need to take action.

What happened to Mr. Layton’s resolve to tackle crime? What happened to the Liberals’ impassioned vows to restore law and order?

Now that all political parties have been presented with the opportunity to fulfill their promise to enact laws that will keep our streets and communities safe, they’ve once again resumed their role as “defenders of the convicted” and are casting criminals as hapless victims of a cruel justice system.

The Liberals and NDP have now engaged in delay-tactics and are obstructing the crime bills the Conservative Government has tabled. Our most recent piece of crime legislation, Bill C-27, would keep dangerous serial-offenders in jail and add restrictions and conditions for high risk offenders when they are finally released.

The fact is that much of the crime risk faced by Canadian communities is posed by repeat offenders. Unfortunately, we cannot prevent some convicts from re-offending no matter how much rehabilitation they undergo. When it comes to violent and sexual offences, the government has an obligation to put the safety of Canadians first. We have to draw the line at some point.

The opposition parties, who seem to have conveniently forgotten their electioneering promises to tackle crime, say Bill C-27 may contravene the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. However, I believe our Conservative Government legislation effectively strikes a balance between the rights of the individual and the need to ensure our communities are protected from those who wish to harm our citizens.

The Liberals are also willfully slowing the passage of several other Conservative crime bills in the House of Commons or at committee. This includes Bill C-22 which proposes to raise the age of sexual consent from 14 to 16 to better protect our children from sexual predators; Bill C-25 which will strengthen laws against money laundering and financing for terrorism; Bill C-9 which will ban ‘house arrest’ for violent criminals; Bill C-10 which enacts mandatory minimum sentences for serious crimes committed with a firearm; and, Bill C-19 which will crack down on street racing.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper has called upon opposition MPs to put partisan politics aside and work with the government to ensure quick passage of these important new crime-fighting measures.

Communities, families and taxpayers want action, not opposition stone-walling!

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