SoVote

Context: House Hansard - 168 - Mar/10/23

Mr. Pierre Paul-Hus (Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, CPC)

Mar/10/23 12:15:47 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-5 Bill C-325

moved for leave to introduce Bill C‑325, An Act to amend the Criminal Code and the Corrections and Conditional Release Act (conditions of release and conditional sentences). He said: Madam Speaker, MPs have the great privilege to introduce legislation, and I am using mine today. In my political career, I have had many opportunities to question the government about measures needed to deal with violent criminals. I am trying to achieve three things by tabling this bill. First, the bill would create a new offence for the breach of conditions of conditional release imposed in relation to certain serious offences. Second, the bill would require the reporting of those breaches to the appropriate authorities. Third, the bill would amend the Criminal Code to preclude persons convicted of certain offences from serving their sentence in the community. We are talking here about protecting the public. Bill C‑5, which was passed this fall, has had a dramatic impact. For example, men convicted of serious sexual assault are using it to get house arrest. My role as an MP is to work for Canadians and Quebeckers and take actions that will allow us to live in a safe country. That is why I am so proud to respond to the motion adopted by the National Assembly of Quebec on February 15 calling for aggravated sexual assault and other sexual assault offences to be ineligible for community sentences. I hope that my bill will transcend party lines, that the Bloc Québécois will support it without hesitation, and that we shed our political stripes and convictions to focus on one goal: the safety of our constituents.

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Context: House Hansard - 168 - Mar/10/23

Mr. Frank Caputo (Kamloops—Thompson—Cariboo, CPC)

Mar/10/23 12:42:13 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-5

Mr. Speaker, it is always a pleasure to rise on behalf of the people of Kamloops—Thompson—Cariboo. I am going to follow up on the last point my friend and colleague just made, which was in regard to sentencing. I know he mentioned Bill C-5, and we may have some disagreement on minimum penalties. For instance, if memory serves, the maximum penalty for assault is five years when proceeded by an indictment and two years less a day when proceeded summarily. Does my colleague believe or agree that perhaps we need to elevate the maximum sentences when it comes to intimate partner violence? I would point out a couple of things. One is the fact that the Criminal Code talks about people who are vulnerable, and when we talk about the cycle of violence, we are in fact talking about people who are vulnerable. The second is that the Criminal Code mentions that it is an aggravating feature to abuse one's intimate partner. Given those factors, would he propose raising the maximum sentences for people who abuse their intimate partners?

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Context: House Hansard - 168 - Mar/10/23

Mr. Tako Van Popta (Langley—Aldergrove, CPC)

Mar/10/23 1:14:54 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, at the justice committee, where the hon. member and I both serve, we have heard from witnesses, people who work with female victims of crime, and we have heard from more than one witness that sexual assault goes largely unreported. Of those that actually get reported, even fewer go to trial. We have heard from witnesses, from victims of sexual assault, that going to trial is like being on trial themselves, being cross-examined. Of course, we support the presumption of innocence, but this is very traumatizing for people who have been victimized once already. They are being revictimized. I would like my colleague's comments on that.

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Context: House Hansard - 168 - Mar/10/23

Mr. Frank Caputo

Mar/10/23 1:15:53 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for his work on the justice committee. The Criminal Code is really quite convoluted when it comes to sexual assault of intimate partners. In Canada, we have a rule against the twin myths, although I do not have time to get into that. It certainly does not make it any easier on victims. I have had victims literally crying on the phone, asking “Can't you just deal with this so I don't have to go to court?” or “Can't you just get a peace bond?”, anything to avoid it, because they fear the system so much. We have to find a balance that recognizes the presumption of innocence but also takes a trauma-informed approach to victims of sexual assault. In the past, it was so frequent that we thought about sexual assault as happening perhaps in relationships that were very new or when people were not married. We are in fact seeing more and more reports of sexual assault in long-term relationships. One of the most horrific sexual assaults I ever prosecuted involved an intimate relationship of some time. Seeing what that victim had to go through, and I believe she had to testify twice in the trial because of pretrial applications made by the defence, I believe this is an area that we, as a Conservative government, would address.

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