Quebec will refuse to pay for omnibus crime bill

[CHIMO]

Quebec's justice minister called the federal government's omnibus crime bill a "Band-Aid solution" Tuesday and said his province will refuse to absorb the added costs associated with it.

Jean-Marc Fournier, testifying at the House of Commons justice and human rights committee, said Bill C-10 will wind up causing more crime, not less, because it is an unbalanced piece of legislation that doesn't focus enough on the rehabilitation of criminals, particularly young offenders.

He said the legislation is meant to put more people in jail and that will result in higher recidivism rates unless more is done to get at the root causes of criminality and to successfully reintegrate offenders into society so they can go on to lead productive lives.

"What we want is a sustainable protection of the public," he said. "We wish to see a reinsertion of the youth in society so that society can benefit from it."

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/story/2011/11/01/pol-omnibus-crime-bill.html

Ontario should move in on this issue, otherwise it is left to Quebec as a Quebec only issue!

[CHIMO]

1. Provinces won’t foot bill for crime legislation, McGuinty warns PM

Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty is turning up the heat against Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s omnibus anti-crime bill, saying he does not believe any of the provinces are prepared to pay for higher prison costs.

Mr. McGuinty, who has joined forces with Quebec Premier Jean Charest in opposing the bill, hinted Wednesday that opposition is brewing across the country.

“I’d be surprised if any premier of any of the provinces and territories is prepared to welcome new expenditures being foisted upon us by the federal government because they’ve got some plans with respect to criminal law,” Mr. McGuinty told reporters. “It’s easy to sit on high in Ottawa and pass laws. But if there are accompanying costs, we’re not prepared to accept those in Ontario.”

The federal law-and-order agenda is out of sync with the priorities of his government, said the Premier, who is just beginning his third term after emerging from the Oct. 6 election one seat shy of a majority. With Ontario facing a deficit projected to hit $16-billion in the current fiscal year, Mr. McGuinty made it clear he won’t pick up the tab for a federal anti-crime bill that could make it much more expensive to incarcerate people.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/provinces-wont-foot-bill-for-crime-legislation-mcguinty-warns-pm/article2222867/

Good. Somebody should get Stevie some crutches for tomorrow!