It’s an honour and a privilege to stand before the House today to present the Change of Name Amendment Act, 2023, known as Bill 138, and I am proud to introduce this bill with my co-sponsor, the MPP from Thornhill, who I will be sharing my time with.

Similar legislation has been successfully enacted in other provinces, and it is time for Ontario to do the same. This bill has a simple purpose: to prohibit convicted sex offenders from obtaining a legal name change. The term “sex offenders” refers to individuals that are convicted of a sexual offence and are required to comply with the provincial Sex Offender Registry, known as Christopher’s Law. We want to make it harder for sex abusers to cover up their criminal activity and to hide their true identities.

Legal name changes happen frequently in this province, as is necessary. Whether it’s due to marriage or identity purposes, name changes are foundational to allowing people to be who they want to be. While name changes are often positive, there are concerns that need to be addressed. Criminals will exploit and take advantage of any opportunity that comes their way. For example, convicted sexual offenders can use a legal name change to obscure themselves and possibly commit further harm under this new identity.

There is no denying that some individuals will take advantage of rights and privileges and use them to inflict harm on others. Although Ontario’s current name change regime has existing protections, there is a need to tighten the process so that sexual offenders do not abuse this privilege.

The Change of Name Amendment Act will enhance our government’s zero-tolerance approach to sexual assault. Further, it will aid our commitment to protecting survivors, their families and communities as a whole. We take sexual assault and crimes against children extremely seriously. Providing supports and protections to Ontarians remains one of our top priorities.

A zero-tolerance approach is necessary when dealing with a heinous crime like sexual assault, particularly when the victims are children. These types of crimes often follow a pattern as predators seek out their targets. Unfortunately, predators often target individuals they perceive as vulnerable. Through coercion, threats and intimidation, they force their victims into silence, causing them to feel alienated and alone. You are not alone, and we as the government of Ontario are doing anything we can to bring justice.

Under the current name change process, individuals are required to complete a criminal background check and to have lived in the province for the previous 12 months. Additionally, name changes are published in the Ontario Gazette, unless requested by the applicant and approved by the registrar. That seems complicated, Madam Speaker, but I want to emphasize this: that although name changes are published in the Gazette, making them publicly available, this is not a publication that people frequently consult. In fact, most people probably don’t even know the Gazette exists or where to access it.

While there are existing safeguards in the name change process, more can be done to protect survivors of horrific crimes as convicted sex offenders could successfully change their name under the current system even before they leave jail. Name changes provide these dangerous offenders with an opportunity to distance themselves from their crimes. While offenders can adopt a new identity and possibly commit further harm, their victims are forced to grapple with the repercussions and the trauma. Sex offenders must be held accountable, and the rights of survivors should remain paramount.

It is, of course, important to recognize that recidivism, as in repeating, among sex offenders remains an ongoing problem. Offenders with a prior sexual offence conviction had a recidivism rate nearly double the rate of first-time sexual offenders, 19% versus 37% after 15 years. Unfortunately, there is a visible upward trend of sexual assaults, especially against children, according to the most recent reports from Statistics Canada. This is horrifying. The time to act is now. This is an important measure of protection for the victims.

As previously mentioned, this measure has been adopted in other provinces, like Saskatchewan and Alberta. To demonstrate the need for this legislation, I’ll provide a grave example that contributed to Saskatchewan adopting this policy. David Donald Shumey was a 76-year-old man who returned to Regina after spending 20 years in a US prison for various sexual offences dating back to the mid-1990s. He was arrested in Las Vegas and charged with 88 different counts. When he was released from jail, he returned to Regina and legally changed his name to David Donald Stryker.

We cannot allow individuals like David to adopt a new identity and cause further harm. Even though the name change would have been published in the Saskatchewan Gazette, is it fair to place the onus on survivors to keep tabs on their abusers by browsing the gazette each week? Or would it make more sense to prevent the name change altogether?

Our goal has been and always will be to protect survivors, their families and their communities. If someone is convicted of a sexual offence and required to comply with the sex offender registry known as Christopher’s Law, they should be barred from changing their name. It’s as simple as that.

I’m extremely proud to co-sponsor and bring this legislation before the House. Improving the lives of survivors and providing reassurance and safety to communities is our goal. I look forward to working with all members of the Legislature.

I want to thank the MPP from Timiskaming–Cochrane, the MPP from Simcoe–Grey and the MPP from Essex for their support, along with the co-sponsor, MPP Laura Smith, in moving this bill forward to committee. I also want to thank the partners that have been involved with us in the House today. The 482 Collective, Victim Services of York Region, Ottawa Police Association, Smith Falls Police Association and the Niagara Region Police Association have been in contact and supportive, and of course we’ve had many conversations. And I want to thank—Madam Speaker, I know we’ve worked on bills together to further protect victims of sexual assaults and crimes.

The MPP from Simcoe–Grey articulated it very well. Two lawyers on our side that spoke to this legislation—and I just want to make clear that the legislation affects convicted sexual offenders, people that are charged with sexual abuse against our children, that are under Christopher’s Law. They have violated another human being in a way that has altered that victim’s life forever. This is about not letting them have the ability to hide from their crimes. And as was brought up in the debate, the community does not know. The community is searching for a name that is not publicly out there of someone that has committed this crime—that would be normal. If you were a concerned neighbour, you would go into many search engines and look up the neighbour’s name, but if that convicted criminal has changed their name, that does not help the community be made aware. It protects the offender, and that is what we need to change. That is why other provinces have made these changes, and we have to let victims know that their attacker will not be able to escape and that they are going to be held accountable.

Thank you very much for your co-operation, Madam Speaker, and for the time.