The leader of the Conservative Party of Canada (CPC), Pierre Poilievre, returned to the charge by criticizing the laxity of Justin Trudeau’s liberal government on crime after a Toronto police officer was shot this week while trying to intercept three people suspected of having committed theft by violation.
The 21-year-old man who allegedly shot the 29-year-old police officer was released on bail last May while awaiting trial on a range of charges, including possession of a stolen vehicle and breaching his conditions. probation.
Mr. Poilievre used this incident to denounce a government that leans too much in favor of the rights of the accused. “He was on probation after committing numerous crimes, he was arrested for violating the conditions of his release, he was then released on bail and he shot a police officer,” the Conservative leader said Thursday to the Communes, taking care to treat the man now accused of attempted murder as “scum” (“scum” (“scum”) dirtbag »). “When will the government finally admit that its thug-coddling catch-and-release system is putting Canadians at risk? »
The government’s parliamentary leader, Karina Gould, responded by saying she was “concerned” by the lack of concern shown by the leader of the official opposition for the rights of the accused. Under section 11 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, every accused person has the right “not to be deprived of release on reasonable bail without just cause.” “ [M. Poilievre] tramples on the rights of Canadians guaranteed by the Charter, said Mme Gould. Whether in the House or elsewhere, Canadians should be extremely concerned that when it comes to their rights, his first instinct is to trample them. »
This is a theme that is likely to occupy much of the discussions during the next federal election campaign.
While Mr. Poilievre focuses most of his attacks on the Trudeau government on issues of cost of living and affordability by pledging to abolish the federal carbon tax and accelerate housing construction, his promise to “stop crimes” nevertheless remains central to his political project aimed at restoring order in the country.
This is a rather profitable theme for him in the rest of Canada, where voters say they are increasingly concerned about crime and generalized neglect after nine years under the Liberals. British Columbia’s failed experiment in decriminalizing hard drugs and rising violent crime by street gangs in Toronto have contributed to the feeling that Canada is “broken.” Mr. Poilievre appears to offer a ready-made solution to this problem.
However, Mr. Poilievre’s “solution” would involve the suspension of certain fundamental rights by using the derogation provision of the Constitution in order to toughen criminal laws.
Last April, during a speech before the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police (CACP), Mr. Poilievre suggested that he would use this clause to reinstate the successive prison sentences that the Supreme Court of Canada , in a unanimous judgment in 2022, had ruled to be contrary to section 12 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, which prohibits “all cruel and unusual treatment or punishment”.
The conservative government of Stephen Harper, of which Mr. Poilievre was a member, had introduced the possibility for judges to impose successive sentences. The killer of the great mosque of Quebec, Alexandre Bissonnette, was initially sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for 40 years. The Supreme Court’s judgment had the effect of reducing the length of his sentence to 25 years; he will become eligible for parole in 2042.
Mr. Poilievre was outraged by this decision and said he trusted the opinions of “the people” more than the judges in this matter. “All my proposals are constitutional. We will ensure that they are constitutional. We will use whatever tool the Constitution gives me to make them constitutional. I think you know exactly what I mean,” he insisted in front of the members of the ACCP. “I will be a prime minister democratically elected by the people, who will themselves be able to judge whether their laws are constitutional. »
In response to the outcry that followed in the rest of Canada, the Trudeau government acted in 2023 to tighten bail conditions, notably by creating a new provision for reversing the onus of proof for repeat cases. with violence and use of a firearm. But these changes have not satisfied most critics.
Mr. Poilievre has been making this a hobby horse for months. He is supported in his efforts by Ontario’s Progressive Conservative Premier, Doug Ford, who usually keeps his distance from the federal Conservative leader. After the Toronto shooting this week, Mr. Ford wrote on X: “Enough is enough. The federal government must do its job and fix our broken bail system so we can keep dangerous criminals behind bars and off our streets. »
No federal government has invoked the notwithstanding clause since the adoption of the Charter in 1982. Some constitutional experts warn that its use by Mr. Poilievre would set a precedent that would have the effect of trivializing its use and depriving Ottawa of a certain moral authority vis-à-vis the provinces, including Quebec, which have already used the notwithstanding provision. Mr. Poilievre seems to not care at all.