Statement in the House of Commons

Crime Prevention

Thursday, April 26, 2007

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives’ crime policies are about scoring political headlines rather than making our streets safer. Victims of crime don't care about politics or headlines. They just want to know that criminals will be stopped, caught and punished.

A new Liberal government would pursue a tough, effective strategy to fight crime and make our communities safer.

We are putting forward a comprehensive crime strategy that is lacking by this Minority Conservative government. We are committed to appointing more judges; putting more police officers on the street and more prosecutors in the courts; protecting the most vulnerable, including children, and seniors; and giving our youth more opportunities to succeed.

A Crime Prevention Strategy involves more than imprisonment — the Liberal government took a proactive role by providing communities with the tools, knowledge and support they need to deal with the root causes of crime at a local level.

While I agree with tough punishments for offenders, we must get to the source of the problem to build a safe country for all.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.