OTTAWA – April 7, 2014 – The Honourable Steven Blaney, Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, today issued the following statement after speaking at the Canadian Police Association (CPA) Annual General Meeting and the Victims Week Federal Symposium in Ottawa.
“Today I had the opportunity to speak about two subjects of importance to the Government of Canada: our Government’s Victims Bill of Rights and the Economics of Policing.
Our Government is ensuring the safety and security of Canadians, and an important factor in doing so is to ensure the long-term sustainability of the high-quality police services we have across the country. Our Government has been working with our partners on the Economics of Policing – a collaborative initiative aimed at addressing the challenges facing our police services.
In November 2013, Federal, Provincial and Territorial Ministers responsible for Justice and Public Safety approved the Economics of Policing - Shared Forward Agenda for policing and public safety in Canada. This strategy is built around three pillars: efficiencies within police services, new models for community safety and efficiencies within the justice system. It was the result of consultations with many stakeholders and partners and will guide future activities.
Last week the Harper Government introduced legislation to create the Canadian Victims Bill of Rights. This legislation will transform the experiences of victims of crime in the criminal justice system and provide them with a stronger voice in Canada’s judicial system. It will transform the criminal justice system by entrenching rights at the federal level for victims of crime for the first time in Canadian history.
The Canadian Victims Bill of Rights will provide a “chain-of-continuity” for victims of crime in the criminal justice system. It will ensure that victims of crime are supported and engaged from the moment a crime is reported and a police investigation begins; through the trial and sentencing process and the federal offender’s incarceration; to the end point, when the federal offender is released on parole or finishes his or her sentence. This legislation will ensure that victims have a voice and that they are not forgotten.
Our Government will continue to work hard to help ensure the long-term sustainability of police services and the rights of victims of crime.”
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Information:
Jason Tamming
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness
613-991-2924
Media Relations
Public Safety Canada
613-991-0657
media@ps-sp.gc.ca
