Pubdate: Mon, 19 Sep 2011 Source: Nanaimo Daily News (CN BC) Copyright: 2011 Nanaimo Daily News Contact: http://www.canada.com/nanaimodailynews/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1608 Author: Mark Kennedy, Postmedia News CONSERVATIVES TABLE NEW CRIME LAW Tories Begin Controversial Legislative Assault on Crime Early In Agenda, Expected to Draw Fierce Criticism The Harper government will begin its legislative assault on crime on Tuesday -- with the introduction of a law-and-order bill expected to draw fierce criticism from the opposition parties. Among the most contentious of the issues will be criminal reform legislation. On Sunday, a memo was circulated to the Conservative caucus revealing that "comprehensive legislation" -- the Safe Streets and Communities Act -- will be tabled Tuesday. "It is clear that there is still far too much crime in cities and communities across Canada," said the memo, leaked to the media. "These tough new actions will hold criminals more accountable, help improve the safety and security of individuals, and extend greater protection to the most vulnerable members of society and victims of terrorism." "Canadians want and deserve to be able to feel safe in their homes and communities and that means that dangerous criminals need to be off our streets." The memo said that by moving quickly on the issue, the Conservative government is "fulfilling its promise to better protect families and standup for victims." Opposition parties are expected to strongly argue against the legislation -- noting that Statistics Canada has found that there is a consistent downward trend in violent crime. Moreover, they will argue that the Tories are leading the country toward a massive societal shift in which prisons are overcrowded and costly -- an experiment they say has proven disastrous in the United States. In the last minority Parliament, Prime Minister Stephen Harper's Tories introduced a range of crime bills which withered -- in part because they lacked the support of the opposition parties. In the recent election campaign, Harper promised to bundle those 12 bills as omnibus legislation if re-elected and ensure passage within 100 sitting days of the new Parliament's launch. Harper was re-elected with a majority, meaning he now has the power to pass the legislation which is expected to be pulled together in a handful of thematic omnibus bills. It wasn't clear Sunday how much of the bill to be tabled Tuesday will incorporate the 12 bills held over from the last Parliament. Overall, the new measures coming forward this fall will include ending house arrest of criminals, ending automatic pardons for serious crimes, cracking down on organized drug crime, protecting children from sexual predators and strengthening citizens powers to defend themselves and their property. Under the Tories' justice agenda, judges will lose discretion when it comes to handing down sentences, and the country's prisons will be filled with more inmates who will spend more time there. In July, Statistics Canada reported that there were fewer homicides, attempted murders, serious assaults and robberies across Canada in 2010. In 2009, there were 801 attempted murders in Canada, but 2010 saw only 693, making last year's rate the lowest for this offence in more than 30 years. As in the past, most crimes (79%) were non-violent. That includes theft under $5,000, mischief and break-ins. At the time, the figures were downplayed by Justice Minister Rob Nicholson's spokesman, who said the Tories "don't use these statistics as an excuse not to get tough on criminals." But Liberal MP Carolyn Bennett said the government's toughon-crime agenda is divorced from the reality of crime in Canada. "The Harper government's ideologically driven crime agenda is outrageously costly and completely out of line with crime in Canada," she said. "The crime rate is constantly going down, but the expenditures from prisons are going through the roof." Canada's federal corrections system cost nearly $1.6 billion per year when the Conservatives took power in 2005-06, but the projected cost for 2011-12 has increased to $2.98 billion per year, according to Corrections Canada. By 2013-14, the cost of the federal penitentiary system will have almost doubled to $3.147 billion, according to budget projections. - --- MAP posted-by: Richard R Smith Jr.