Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): Yes, I will.

Hon. Raymonde Gagné (Legislative Deputy to the Government Representative in the Senate): Honourable senators, pursuant to rule 4-13(3), I would like to inform the Senate that as we proceed with Government Business, the Senate will address the items in the following order: consideration of Motion No. 53, followed by third reading of Bill C-19, followed by second reading of Bill C-28, followed by all remaining items in the order that they appear on the Order Paper.

[English]

Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate), pursuant to notice of June 22, 2022, moved:

That, notwithstanding any provision of the Rules, previous order or usual practice:

1.if the Senate receives a message from the House of Commons with Bill C-28, An Act to amend the Criminal Code (self-induced extreme intoxication), the bill be placed on the Orders of the Day for second reading on June 23, 2022;

2.if, before this order is adopted, the message on the bill had been received and the bill placed on the Orders of the Day for second reading at a date later than June 23, 2022, it be brought forward to June 23, 2022, and dealt with on that day;

3.all proceedings on the bill be completed on June 23, 2022, and, for greater certainty:

(i)if the bill is adopted at second reading on that day it be taken up at third reading forthwith;

(ii)the Senate not adjourn until the bill has been disposed of; and

(iii)no debate on the bill be adjourned;

4.a senator may only speak once to the bill, whether this is at second or third reading, or on another proceeding, and during this speech all senators have a maximum of 10 minutes to speak, except for the leaders and facilitators, who have a maximum of 30 minutes each, and the sponsor and critic, who have a maximum of 45 minutes each;

5.at 9 p.m. on Thursday, June 23, 2022, if the bill has not been disposed of at third reading, the Speaker interrupt any proceedings then before the Senate to put all questions necessary to dispose of the bill at all remaining stages, without further debate or amendment, only recognizing, if necessary, the sponsor to move the motion for second or third reading, as the case may be; and

6.if a standing vote is requested in relation to any question necessary to dispose of the bill under this order, the vote not be deferred, and the bells ring for only 15 minutes; and

That:

1.the Standing Senate Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs be authorized to examine and report on the matter of self-induced intoxication, including self-induced extreme intoxication, in the context of criminal law, including in relation to section 33.1 of the Criminal Code;

2.the committee be authorized to take into consideration any report relating to this matter and to the subject matter of Bill C-28 made by the House of Commons’ Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights;

3.the committee submit its final report to the Senate no later than March 10, 2023; and

4.when the final report is submitted to the Senate, the Senate request that the government provide a complete and detailed response within 120 calendar days, with the response, or failure to provide a response, being dealt with pursuant to the provisions of rules 12-24(3) to (5).

He said: Honourable senators, I do not intend to participate in the debate. Thank you.

Senator Plett: Thank you, Senator Patterson, for that speech. Let me say at the outset about your analogy of David and Goliath that David was never a minority; he had God on his side. Nevertheless, Senator Patterson, my question really is this: I felt the other day when we passed four government motions in a matter of an hour that I needed to leave and go take a shower.

I suggested to the Leader of the Government in the Senate here a few minutes ago that I needed to wash my mouth with soap after supporting the government. So I take no great pride and pleasure in supporting what I believe has certainly been, even in this particular bill, a shirking of responsibility.

There is a difference here, in my opinion, and I will get to my question immediately. The difference is that this, in my opinion, was not precipitated by the government. It was precipitated by the Supreme Court of Canada. They struck something down. They forced the government to do something and, quite frankly, they forced the government to do something, in my opinion, in too much of a hurry. This is not like a campaign promise that was made two years ago and then two years pass before they come forward with the bill.

Senator Patterson, you alluded to having a couple of suggestions, and they were certainly thought out, about the Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee having a quick meeting or having a second Committee of the Whole. What would have been the purpose, other than we would have heard some people?

We really didn’t have the time to do anything about it, other than what we have done now — voting on a bill, hopefully passing the bill, then having the Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee do a study, sending a report to the government, having the government respond in a certain period of time and hopefully correct something that indeed is flawed. What could we have done better with the path that you possibly suggested?

Hon. Donald Neil Plett (Leader of the Opposition): Honourable senators, I rise to speak to Bill C-19, “Budget Implementation Act, 2022, No. 1.” It feels good to be on the right side of the angels again on this speech.

It actually wasn’t a bad experience, Senator Gold, to vote with you. We should try that more often.

Honourable senators, I will not be long on this, I assure you.

Senator Marshall gave an absolutely crackerjack, excellent rundown of the many problems with this bill in her excellent speech. There are many problems, and I think she outlined almost all of them. Thank you, Senator Marshall. She says there are still some to go. She should have briefed me, because I would have pointed the rest out.

I want to take a few minutes to draw your attention to some important observations, because I know you will want to know about them. The bill we are about to vote on stands as a stark example of the incompetence that has dogged this government for the last seven years. You may have missed it in the crush of business recently, but this legislation came to us from the other place after being amended in 64 different places, including the deletion of 51 clauses. This is unprecedented for a budget implementation act.

This is a 440-page omnibus bill crammed with many measures that should never be in a BIA, as noted by a number of senators. For a while, this government was able to use COVID as a “get out of jail free” card. Their repeated claims that they needed to rush legislation through without adequate oversight and study were made under the shadow of a global pandemic and parliamentarians had little choice but to comply for the sake of public health and economic stability.

Honourable senators, those days are gone. The government can no longer shield itself from its own incompetence by claiming that it is because of the pandemic. The crisis of scrambling to make policy in the midst of an unforeseen global pandemic is behind us. Yet the only evidence that this government has succeeded in moving on this is the fact that they have added chaos to incompetence.

Every direction in which you turn today, you see this government scrambling to contain the consequences of its incompetence which is bursting through the cracks like a dam about to let go.

We have a Minister of Foreign Affairs whose department thinks it’s a great idea to send a representative to a party at the Russian embassy. As Russian shells bomb residential neighbourhoods in Ukraine, killing women and children, disrupting global food supplies and threatening world peace, Minister Joly’s deputy chief of protocol, Yasemin Heinbecker, joined the festivities at the embassy here in Ottawa. This is incompetence.

Over at Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, there is a backlog of more than 2.2 million immigration applications, and Minister Fraser has no clue how to fix it — none. Meanwhile, the government promised to help 40,000 Afghans immigrate to Canada. To date, only 10,565 applications have been approved. There is nothing but chaos in this department.

Then there is the debacle of trying to fly anywhere from Canada and finding nothing but chaos at the airports. The transport minister has no solutions to offer and just blames it on out-of-practice travellers. Colleagues, you and I have been travelling. We’re not out of practice, and the same chaos affects us as it does anyone else. I don’t know who is out of practice here.

Go to a passport office. Chaos ensues there as well. People are camping out and lining up all day long to try to get their passports processed, only to be turned away and told to try again tomorrow. The government is clueless, and Minister Gould has no solution for the mess.

Minister Freeland has out-of-control inflation, colleagues, a budget that is beyond balancing and a debt load that threatens to crush future generations. There is no plan to rein in spending or inflation, which, as you know, now sits at 7.7% — the highest since 1983.

Who was in government in 1983? What was the name of that prime minister?

Under Minister Hussen’s oversight as the Minister of Housing and Diversity and Inclusion, the cost of homes has skyrocketed to a place where home ownership is now out of reach for an entire generation. Their only solution? Well, they have none. Chaos reigns.

Meanwhile, Minister Guilbeault has released new emissions targets which everyone knows the government will never hit and which the media has described as hinging on “hopes and miracles.”

Minister Mendicino, whose nose is getting longer by the day, is scrambling to explain why he misled Canadians by saying police forces asked the government to invoke the Emergencies Act. And Minister Blair, colleagues, is shovelling as fast as he can to explain why Commissioner Lucki promised to use the mass murders in Nova Scotia to advance Liberal government policy.

Minister Rodriguez is trying to do what no one in any other democratic country has tried to do: control the internet. While Minister Sajjan is just trying to be the first in line at the airports. This is what this government has brought us this session: incompetence and chaos. And in the midst of it all, in the final days of the sitting, the Prime Minister leads by example by jetting off to some faraway land. No one knows where. No sense of responsibility. No sense of urgency. No sense at all; just incompetence. Fiddling while Ottawa is burning.

What did they do today? What’s their business before they leave? Bringing in another hybrid motion forever, because there just might be another pandemic on the horizon. This has worked so well; let’s bring in another one. Let’s add another $2 or $3 trillion to the debt.

Colleagues, we are about to vote on Bill C-19. This bill does not deserve our support or your support. There is, however, a silver lining here, colleagues. There is hope. The Conservative Party of Canada will have a leadership vote on September 10. Our 700,000 members will be electing a leader. There is hope. The saviour is coming. Let’s just wait. He will be there.

In the meantime, let’s do the right thing — let’s throw this budget in the garbage. Let’s show the Prime Minister we are independent. Every one of us, we are independent. Some are Conservative independents, some Liberal independents or relative independents or — I still can’t understand how you can call yourself Canadian Senators. Canadian Senators are indeed the only independent senators group. Colleagues, let’s show our independence. Let’s vote down this budget that does not deserve our vote. Thank you, colleagues.

The Hon. the Speaker pro tempore: All those in favour of the motion, who are present in the chamber, please say “yea.”

The Hon. the Speaker pro tempore: Those opposed to the motion and who are present in the Senate chamber will please say, “nay.”

The Hon. the Speaker pro tempore: Thirty minutes it is. Call in the senators.

Motion agreed to and bill read third time and passed on the following division:

The Hon. the Speaker pro tempore: Are honourable senators ready for the question?

Hon. Jim Quinn: Honourable senators, I want to start by thanking Senator Plett for his observations that, as senators, we do have the right to rise, say what we are thinking and what we believe our motivation should be as individuals. I also want to say that I, for one, embrace the independence of this Senate. Although as a new senator, I sometimes observe and I’m not sure how independent we actually are.

With that, I will start my formal comments which are, as I said — although I am new to the Senate — a few observations on what I understand is not an unusual occurrence in December and June. At these points on the parliamentary calendar, we are asked — if not expected — to rush to pass proposed legislation as some matters are deemed to be government priorities and essential at the moment that they are to be considered.

There can be little doubt that some items are essential and must be responded to in a timely manner. We are all aware that we are not the elected representatives of the people of Canada. That privilege belongs to our colleagues in the other place. At the same time, we are parliamentarians. We are expected to play an important role in the legislative process on behalf of Canadians from all regions of our country.

Among other things, we are expected to be a place of sober second thought, to review and add value to government bills and to hear from Canadians through our committee work, which I understand — and I hear on an ongoing basis — is the strength of this institution.

I’ve said it before, but I believe it’s worthy of being repeated today: We’ve all been appointed, and part of that process is speaking with the Prime Minister. When I had that conversation with the Prime Minister, he acknowledged that I may not always agree with the initiatives of his government but that, as an independent senator, he expected me to participate in debate with the goal of proposing input that I felt would add value to proposals.

He acknowledged that even then I may still not necessarily agree with a given proposal, which he noted is okay, but that, as an independent senator, he encouraged me to do my job of bringing sober second thought to the discussion.

Honourable colleagues, in doing my job I clearly understand that you may not agree with things I bring forward. And that’s perfectly fine, because I understand that you, too, are doing the job that you have been asked to do. All I expect, and all that we should expect of each other, is that we continue to respect but not necessarily agree with the views and inputs of others because, at the end of the day, we are all doing the best we can in doing our jobs.

So we are at that time of year, on the eve of rising for summer recess, when there is considerable pressure for us to waive our jobs as senators to study, with sober second thought, legislation that comes from the House of Commons.

With Bill C-28, there are legitimate concerns being raised by numerous individual Canadians, and I have no doubt that all of us in this chamber have had our inboxes inundated with emails from people from across the country with varying views. We are also hearing from various organizations, including women’s organizations, that feel that they did not have meaningful consultation in the preparation of this bill. They are also concerned that Parliament is not seriously listening to them, simply because it’s June and we are looking to rise for the summer.

I have no doubt, if it were March, that we would go through a more normal process of hearing from witnesses and engaging in debate. I believe debate is so valuable in gaining a better appreciation for the reasoning of honourable colleagues’ points of view. In fact, I embrace the value of debate, as I believe it helps each of us to be better informed as we decide, as independent senators, how we will eventually vote on a particular matter.

Here we are today, proposing that we rush through this bill — through all stages in one day. I may be continuing to learn the rules of processing legislation in the Senate, but at this time, with this bill, it just simply seems wrong, especially when we know there are numerous women’s groups that have just been referred to. They’re asking us to slow it down just a bit so they have the opportunity to be heard on what is truly an important piece of legislation. I, for one, believe that these women need to be heard.

The government could have brought this bill forward earlier or asked us to sit longer to deal with this important issue. If this motion is defeated, what would be the next steps? The Senate and the Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee could meet next week to be sure that we have heard from stakeholders, such as these women’s groups and, I would respectfully add, legal experts.

In fact, I mention this latter group as many of our colleagues are lawyers, and some of them seem to have expressed some concerns with legal implications. I understand that those concerns are connected to a question of if the evidentiary burden is too high and the result could be that the Crown will be unable to secure a conviction. I, for one, would value senators with legal backgrounds having the opportunity to consider this and any other points of law through just a bit more discussion with other legal experts at committee.

Hearing from women’s groups and legal experts may result in amendments being proposed, and we would then be collectively in a better position to accept them or not. Passing this motion seems to get things backwards: After having passed the bill and receiving Royal Assent, it’s proposed that we then study what will be law later in the fall.

Should we not take that bit of time now to at least hear from the women’s groups that have simply asked to be heard and from legal experts so we can have a better understanding of their points of view? I’m not suggesting that Parliament sit beyond the opportunity of having our committees hear from the aforementioned people.

Before closing, I want to say that I respect the work that the leaders do in this chamber, but I also respect the ability, as a member of my particular group, the Canadian Senators Group, to express my independence and be respected by my colleagues. So I thank them for that.

Honourable colleagues, I thank you for allowing me to express my thoughts in this chamber today.

Some Hon. Senators: Nay.

The Hon. the Speaker pro tempore: If you are opposed to the motion, please say “nay.”

Hon. Paula Simons: Senator Gold, I want to thank you for that really interesting speech. It made me wish I had the privilege of being a student in one of your constitutional law classes. I hope you don’t mind, because we won’t have the chance to hear from other witnesses, if I ask you a question that may seem simple because I did not go to law school.

I want to understand what impact this would have at sentencing. If you’re being pre-emptively found to be criminally negligent, would that be something the judge would also consider at sentencing, or is it only to establish the criminal intent itself?

Hon. Denise Batters: Senator Gold, yes, until the Supreme Court of Canada case last month, the last time I heard or thought much about automatism was probably in a first-year criminal law class. But it’s a very serious topic that we’re dealing with today, so I’m glad that this bill is being brought forward in a timely manner.

My question is as a result of this motion. The Standing Senate Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs — of which I am a member and have been for quite some time — is going to be required to study this general topic and then report back by March, and then the government will have 120 days after that to respond to that particular report.

Perhaps you could explain, because it seems a bit strange to have the Legal Committee, long after the fact — many months after this bill has passed — prepare a report and then to have the government respond to it afterwards. Is it the intent that there may be a more in-depth study where perhaps amendments would result that would strengthen this bill? Maybe you could just explain that. Thank you.

Senator Gold: It’s an excellent question, and it does give me the opportunity to link that part of the process that we agreed to earlier today with the concerns that were expressed both in the chamber and outside the chamber.

I believe it was our colleague Senator Boisvenu who asked the minister why he didn’t just sort of fix it with the “notwithstanding” clause temporarily and then come back with a more comprehensive — I don’t want to put words in Senator Boisvenu’s mouth, but concerns have been expressed that what’s really needed here is a fresh look at the role of intoxication in criminal liability and greater attention on the rights of victims and the gendered nature of the crime.

This was a narrow decision creating a small gap. It’s like the leaky faucet in the third-floor bathroom; it’s not the whole house crumbling around us.

The purpose, I think, of giving our Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee time to look at the broader area is precisely for senators to have the benefit — not necessarily exclusively, although I’m sure it will be a part of it — to look at this bill, if it passes, and also at the larger issue. They can then make recommendations and hear witnesses and contribute and do our part, which we do well, in trying to move the evolution of the law forward.

It’s also important to remember, colleagues, that it’s not simply that we “ask” the government to respond within 120 days. The motion is very clear that it refers to our Rules; the government has to respond within 120 days. If they don’t respond, the matter gets sent to a special committee under our Rules; it could even be considered a breach of the privilege of Parliament. It’s a serious business. I’m not aware of governments ever not honouring obligations of that kind.

We’re not talking about parliamentary reviews, about which I am often questioned, understandably, in Question Period. This is a serious attempt to allow for proper, sober study of a really important, complicated issue which, by virtue of the Supreme Court of Canada decision, needs proper time. I think we all agree, and I think Senator Plett said it better than me in an earlier discussion, that this just has to be fixed now.

Now, I believe it’s fixed properly. It is not the government’s view and it’s not my view that we’re sending it out there to fix all the flaws. Reasonable people can disagree. The debate will reveal the diversity of opinions; I respect that. If in fact the study in the Senate reveals that there’s a better way to fix this particular problem, it will be put forward. And I agree with Senator Lankin; I think this government would be responsive to attempts to improve it. It shares the objectives. It defended, as well as it could, as did LEAF and other intervenors, the current law.

Justice Kasirer, whom I respect as a jurist of enormous qualities, and the court, whom I respect equally, came to a different view. Indeed, many scholars for some decades have been saying, “We’re not so sure about section 33.1.” There have been questions about its constitutionality in the literature for a long time, but here we are. I hope that answers your question.

Senator Gold: Thank you for the question.

We have to be clear about one thing: The motion that structured our debate today also includes this future study of the broader issues, but we’re voting on the bill today. If you support the bill as it is, please vote for it. I think the bill is worthy of support, as I tried my best to demonstrate.

So, Senator Jaffer, with respect, this is not that different from things we have done. For instance, in May, we passed the bill but recognized that there were issues that were ripe for a decision. In that case, it was a joint parliamentary committee that was to look, study and come back.

How the government of the day, regardless of the party that forms government, responds to our recommendations will depend upon the quality of our recommendations and the receptivity of the government. This government is receptive to improving criminal law. It has shown itself receptive to responding immediately to the Supreme Court of Canada decision. I have every confidence that if this government is still in place when the reports come back, they will have a receptive ear.

Hon. Pierre-Hugues Boisvenu: Senator Gold, thank you very much for your hard work in defending this bill, which seems to me to be completely out of step with the Canadian reality for women who are victims of domestic violence.

I rise today as the critic of Bill C-28, An Act to amend the Criminal Code (self-induced extreme intoxication), which was introduced by the Honourable David Lametti, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada.

We all know that Bill C-28 is a legislative response to the recent Supreme Court of Canada decision in Brown and would rewrite section 33.1 of the Criminal Code to make it constitutional and to add the concept of negligence. This means that if a person voluntarily and recklessly consumes an excessive amount of drugs and alcohol, and it was reasonably foreseeable that this would cause them to lose control of themselves and their actions, that person would be considered guilty of negligence and could be held criminally responsible for their actions.

Honourable senators, I have reservations about the Government of Canada’s decision to hastily introduce a bill at the last minute after the Supreme Court of Canada’s decision to strike down section 33.1 of the Criminal Code. That section prevented an accused person from using self-induced extreme intoxication as a defence in order to obtain a verdict of not criminally responsible or an acquittal. To me, this bill appears to respond only partially to the Supreme Court’s decision and comments.

Honourable colleagues, remember medical assistance in dying. In 2015, the Supreme Court handed down an important ruling calling on Parliament to rewrite the Criminal Code provisions on medical assistance in dying. The current government introduced Bill C-14 and had to reintroduce Bill C-7 because C-14 didn’t meet the criteria in the Supreme Court decision. Bill C-7, now law, was passed but still doesn’t fulfill the requirements in the Supreme Court decision. Now, seven years later, a committee has been tasked with ensuring that future amendments are consistent with the Supreme Court’s ruling. I think this bill is like the others in that we are likely to be back here again in a year or two having to amend it to make it consistent with the Supreme Court’s decision and comments.

In its decision, the Supreme Court found that section 33 of the Criminal Code violated the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. I would like to quote a very important part of the decision:

Since s. 33.1 allows the court to convict an accused without proof of the constitutionally required mens rea [notion] it violates s. 7 of the Charter. Section 33.1 also directs that an accused person is criminally responsible for their involuntary conduct. Because involuntariness negates the actus reus of the offence, involuntary conduct is not criminal, and the law recognizes that voluntariness for the conviction of a crime is a principle of fundamental justice.

The decision continues as follows:

Section 33.1 also breaches the right to be presumed innocent until proven guilty guaranteed by s. 11(d) of the Charter. To convict the accused, the Crown must prove all the essential elements of an offence beyond a reasonable doubt.

Honourable senators, I’m sure you understand that despite my obvious disappointment with the Supreme Court decision, which I believe poses a risk to the safety of women living in a context of domestic violence, I will not go over the reasons that led the Supreme Court to strike down section 33.1 of the Criminal Code. Nevertheless, I would like to underscore the strong public disapproval of this decision and its impact on victims of crime, despite whatever relevant aspects it might include.

We know that women are the most likely to be affected by this decision, since they are the primary victims of homicide and sexual assault in the context of domestic violence.

Let’s look at the case the Supreme Court ruled on. A young man, who had consumed a large quantity of drugs, broke into a woman’s home and beat her severely, leaving her with permanent injuries. The man has since been acquitted of the crime he committed against an innocent woman. In response to the decision, the victim stated the following:

It’s important to remember that [this decision] has negative consequences for the victims of aggravated assault in this country, some of whom have lost their lives as a result of these attacks.

With this ruling, a sex offender could use self-induced intoxication as a defence for sexually assaulting a woman after getting high or drunk as a result of his own actions. Similarly, an abusive husband could be found not criminally responsible or even be acquitted of killing his wife after becoming intoxicated.

I would remind you that in a large proportion of crimes involving family or domestic violence, the component of intoxication is almost always present. The statistics are troubling. Quebec makes up 22% of the population of Canada, but in 2018, it accounted for 45% of the cases in Canada where the perpetrator was found not criminally responsible. I fear that the Supreme Court ruling will just open up a new loophole with respect to the possibility of using the verdict of not criminally responsible to acquit abusive men.

I want to point out that this ruling sends a bad message to women and victims of crime, and it undermines Canadians’ trust in our justice system.

That being said, the Minister of Justice decided to provide a legislative response through Bill C-28. Although I commend his desire to react swiftly to a ruling that is unjust to victims, I would like to note that swiftness is not a sign of effectiveness in justice, especially when we are talking about a bill that amends the Criminal Code in response to a recent Supreme Court ruling.

It will have taken us only one week to pass Bill C-28, and we will not have had the time to do our job, which is to study it thoroughly and ensure, as is our duty, that this bill fixes all the problems identified by the Supreme Court that I mentioned earlier.

Our objective is not to pass an imperfect bill that will be challenged in court and struck down by the Supreme Court, but rather to pass legislation that respects the Charter and protects victims of crime.

Yesterday, Hugues Parent, a law professor at the University of Montreal, wrote in La Presse that if this bill is passed in its current form, it is highly likely that section 31 will be easily circumvented. My colleague, Senator Carignan, asked Senator Gold questions about this. According to Mr. Parent’s analysis, Bill C-28 is based on extreme intoxication akin to automatism, which occurs only in very rare cases. He suggests that defence lawyers will not have much trouble circumventing section 33.1 when defending an accused who was in a state of psychosis, a behaviour that is much more common after excessive consumption of drugs, which he refers to as insanity, not automatism.

The Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee, which could make any necessary changes, will not have the opportunity to properly examine this major and worrisome flaw in the bill. That poses an additional threat to women’s safety.

The National Association of Women and the Law, Women’s Shelters Canada and Luke’s Place Support and Resource Centre for Women and Children indicated in a letter to senators that the government’s lack of consultation on this bill was worrisome. They also indicated that they were consulted only a few days before the bill was introduced, that the government didn’t follow up on the alternative measures they proposed, and that those measures weren’t included in Bill C-28. I repeat: Their proposals were not considered, even though their clients are the ones who are most affected by this bill. If I were a woman today, I would be outraged and concerned that this bill doesn’t take the concerns of these organizations into account.

Honourable senators, I would like to quote an excerpt from that letter that really spoke to me. It reads, and I quote:

The defence of extreme intoxication is one that is almost always advanced by men perpetrating violence against women.

They use the word “always.”

Further, men responsible for violence against women are usually intoxicated.

That is what I was saying earlier in my speech.

Even if it is a high evidentiary bar for a successful defence of extreme intoxication, the real-life impacts of the availability of the defence on charging and prosecution decisions cannot be underestimated. Parliament should act quickly to ensure that accused men who voluntarily become extremely intoxicated before committing gendered violence are held accountable.

This excerpt is simply a continuation of what the Supreme Court of Canada said when rendering its decision. Indeed, by striking down section 33.1, the highest court in the land has suggested to Parliament an opportunity to make legislation that protects women and victims. I would like to quote from that ruling, as follows:

Protecting the victims of violent crime — particularly in light of the equality and dignity interests of women and children who are vulnerable to intoxicated sexual and domestic violence — is a pressing and substantial social purpose.

I didn’t see any urgent measures in Bill C-28 other than rewriting section 33.1. There is no mention of victims or women. The Supreme Court said that there was a pressing and substantial social purpose, but that purpose is not addressed in Bill C-28, since this legislative response doesn’t provide any concrete measures to protect victims of violent crime, the majority of whom are women. The proposed measures are simply an attempt to quickly close the loophole created by the Supreme Court of Canada’s decision without regard for the underlying problem of violence against women in Canada.

I think the minister would have been wise to temporarily use section 33 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, known as the notwithstanding clause, in order to introduce a bill in the fall that delivers on what victims groups are asking for and to announce legislation to better protect victims of domestic violence. I would have liked to hear the minister tell us that this bill is a first step and reassure women, the primary victims of domestic violence, that he would bring forward fundamental measures in the fall to ensure that they are protected in the Criminal Code. The minister left this aspect out entirely.

I remind senators that 173 women were killed in 2021 and 160 were killed in 2020, for a total of 333 women, which is 30% higher than three years ago. That is more than 30% higher, which means we can expect this figure to rise in the coming years.

I’m sure you can understand how uncomfortable it makes me feel, as an advocate for victims of crime and for women who are victims of violence, that this bill does not tackle this scourge directly. Why didn’t the minister seize this opportunity to put forward concrete measures, as Quebec did by introducing electronic bracelets for criminals about to leave prison? Quebec created specialized courts for cases involving domestic and sexual violence. Why didn’t the minister announce similar measures right away? What’s the government waiting for to take action?

I have been talking to you about violence against women for five years now. Don’t tell me the minister wasn’t aware of the situation. The other place even passed Bill C-233 in June. Introduced by Liberal MP Anju Dhillon, C-233 will authorize the use of electronic monitoring devices across Canada. Why didn’t the minister add the legislative measures proposed by Ms. Dhillon to his bill? Both measures could have been adopted at the same time. If the measures in Bill C-233 had been included in Bill C-28, I think the majority of victims’ and women’s groups would have applauded that. What we are in the process of doing now is making women even more worried about the future.

Although I acknowledge the federal government’s willingness to act in this case, I think this bill is flawed and, more importantly, it doesn’t go far enough and fails to reach its target of better protecting women in Canada.

Despite my criticisms, I intend to support the passage of this bill for lack of an alternative. However, I will continue to fight so that we can improve this situation next fall and so that women can get the protection they deserve. Thank you.

Hon. Raymonde Gagné (Legislative Deputy to the Government Representative in the Senate): Honourable senators, I understand that there has been an agreement that, rather than cutting debate off at 9 p.m. it should be extended until 9:30 p.m., in order to accommodate senators wishing to speak. I would therefore ask for leave that the terms of the order adopted earlier today be applied as if the time specified in point 5 were 9:30 p.m.

Hon. Senators: Hear, hear!