Hello,
In the wake of the controversy surrounding Paul Bernardo’s transfer from a maximum-security to medium-security institution, the head of the Correctional Service of Canada says it is trying to be better at helping victims of crime affected by the agency.
Commissioner Anne Kelly discussed the changes today in an appearance before the Commons committee on public safety and national security, at which there were a number of questions about the case involving Bernardo, a serial killer who began serving a life sentence in 1995.
Kelly told MPs that she has established a committee of 11 members that includes victims of crime as well as correctional experts. It started its work on Nov. 17.
“Over the next months, it will explore how we provide services to victims of crime and examine additional areas that could be further strengthened,” she said.
“We have also recently undertaken a review of our policies to see how we an better serve victims and provide them with timely information about the offender who harmed them.”
Bernardo was sentenced for the kidnapping, sexual assault, torture and murder of 14-year-old Leslie Mahaffy in 1991 and 15-year-old Kristen French in 1992. He also was convicted of manslaughter in the 1990 death of 15-year-old Tammy Homolka.
In May, he was transferred from Millhaven Institution, a maximum-security facility in Ontario, to La Macaza Institution, a medium-security facility in Quebec.
A review of the transfer by a three-person panel found the decisions were sound and followed all laws and policies, but additional steps could have been taken to provide more information to the public.
“I regret any pain and concern this has caused,” Kelly said today about the families of Bernardo’s victims.
“What they have gone through is unimaginable. This offender committed horrific crimes, and hearing about this case has brought up strong emotions, and rightly so.”
Bernardo’s move caused political controversy, with the Conservatives pressing the federal government to send him back to maximum security, and the government, in turn, saying it could not intervene in the work of the correctional service given it is an independent agency.
There was an additional controversy when Marco Mendicino, then the public-safety minister, was unaware of the transfer even though members of his staff were alerted by the Correctional Service three months before it took place. Mendicino, a Toronto MP, was dropped as minister when Prime Minister Justin Trudeau shuffled his cabinet in July.
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TODAY’S HEADLINES
NDP open to waiving end-of-year deadline for pharmacare legislation – No such legislation has been tabled in the House of Commons as the end of November approaches, raising questions on Parliament Hill about whether the Liberals remain committed to moving ahead on pharmacare.
‘Historic’ deal on Toronto’s finances will see province take over two city expressways – The deal, announced today at Queen’s Park by Premier Doug Ford and Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow, would see the province take on the ownership, as well as operating and repair costs, of both the Don Valley Parkway and the elevated Gardiner Expressway.
Nearly 20% of inmates homeless upon release from Ontario jails, data show – The problem has only increased over the past five years as communities across the province grapple with the escalating crises of housing affordability, mental health and addiction.
Alberta to apply Sovereignty Act to try to thwart federal clean-electricity plan – The Alberta Premier, on her weekly Saturday radio show, said she planned to use the act today because Ottawa’s ambitions to decarbonize the country’s electricity grid by 2035 are unconstitutional. Story here.
B.C. government in court against pharma companies in bid to certify opioid class-action lawsuit – The court action today comes even after the Supreme Court agreed this month to hear a constitutional challenge by four of the companies that say a law allowing B.C. to recover costs on behalf of other governments is an overreach. Story here.
Poor Inuit housing ‘direct result of colonialism,’ federal housing advocate says – “The housing conditions that the Inuit inhabit are the direct result of colonialism and a staggering failure by successive federal, provincial and territorial governments over many decades,” says a new report from Marie-Josée Houle.
Ottawa poised to announce new methane regulations – These regulations will be the cornerstone of Canada’s COP28 climate plan. They follow a 2021 joint agreement in which more than 100 countries promised to cut methane emissions by at least 30 per cent below 2020 levels by 2030. Story here.
The Conservatives may be headed for their best fundraising year ever – Over the past four quarters, the Conservatives have out-fundraised the Liberals by an average of about $4.3-million per quarter. If that trend continues in the last quarter of 2023, the Conservatives will have their best year relative to the Liberals since the modern Conservative Party was formed two decades ago. Story here.
Number of people using Ontario food banks rose 38% last year, report finds – The new report by Feed Ontario, a collective of hunger relief organizations, says much of the growth came from first-time visitors, who accounted for two out of five people who used food banks.
Montreal’s anti-racism commissioner under fire for participating in pro-Palestinian rally – As Bochra Manaï now reaches out to Jewish groups on the mayor’s orders, Valérie Plante is facing renewed pressure to replace her.
N.S. lobster fishing season opens amid tensions between Indigenous leaders and Ottawa –As fishermen took to the sea for the region’s most lucrative lobster fishing season, Mi’kmaq leaders are decrying the federal government’s decision to maintain limits on their access to the fishery in what they say is a violation of their treaty rights. Story here.
People with poor ‘personal hygiene’ could be fined, kicked out of Montreal’s public libraries – The new code of conduct for people who visit public libraries will bar them from blocking library doors, sleeping inside, threatening others and bringing in bedbugs.
THIS AND THAT
Dancho’s daughter – Conservative MP Raquel Dancho, the member for the Manitoba riding of Kildonan-St.Paul and Official Opposition public-safety critic, here announced the birth of her daughter, Elizabeth Eden Gurski Dancho.
Today in the Commons – Projected Order of Business at the House of Commons, Nov. 27, accessible here.
Deputy Prime Minister’s day – Private meetings in Ottawa, and Chrystia Freeland attended Question Period. Freeland was also scheduled to appear before the Commons finance committee to discuss Bill C-56, the Affordable Housing and Groceries Act.
Ministers on the road – Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly is in Brussels today through Wednesday for a meeting of NATO foreign ministers, where topics on the agenda include Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the Israel-Hamas war and defence-spending commitments.
Commons committee highlights – National Defence Minister Bill Blair appeared before a joint hearing with the Senate of the scrutiny of regulations committee that reviews various regulations, orders and commissions. Anne Kelly, Commissioner for the Correctional Service of Canada, appeared before the public safety and National Security Committee on the rights of victims of crime, reclassification and transfer of federal offenders. Ian McKay, Canada’s ambassador to Japan and special envoy for the Indo-Pacific, appeared at a hearing of the committee on the relationship between China and Canada. Deputy RCMP Commissioner Bryan Larkin of specialized police services was scheduled to appear before the access to information, privacy and ethics committee on the use of social media platforms for data harvesting and unethical or illicit sharing of personal information with foreign entities.
PRIME MINISTER’S DAY
Private meetings in the National Capital Region.
LEADERS
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre attended Question Period.
Green Party Leader Elizabeth May is in New York City for the meeting of the states parties to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh, in the Greater Toronto Area, celebrated Gurpurab and the birth of Guru Nanak with the local community.
No schedules provided for Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet and Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre,
THE DECIBEL
On today’s edition of The Globe and Mail podcast, columnist Marcus Gee, who specializes in reporting on cities and the opioid crisis, explains why the southwestern Ontario city of London is bringing city services to encampments, and how a compassionate approach is both a test – and potentially a new model – for other municipalities. The Decibel is here.
OPINION
The Globe and Mail Editorial Board on Pierre Poilievre’s lousy week of leadership: “At some point in the life of the official opposition in the House of Commons, the party – and especially its leader – need to start auditioning for the role of government. A good time to do that is when you’re leading by miles in the polls and an election could come any time in the next two years. And a good way to do it is to demonstrate that you have the judgment and temperament for the serious job of running a G7 nation. By that score, the Conservatives and their leader, Pierre Poilievre, just had a lousy week. Given opportunities to demonstrate leadership, they instead showed themselves to be petty, partisan and disingenuous.”
Campbell Clark (The Globe and Mail) on how the government’s IT contracting pays middlemen to get around the system: “When the two founders of a company called Botler worked with officials at the Canada Border Services Agency on a chatbot project, they were surprised to learn later that the contract for their work was issued to a company they had never heard of. Amir Morv and Ritika Dutt complained that didn’t make sense. But through the many hours of testimony at the parliamentary committee investigating the ArriveCan app, it is clear that’s not unusual. It’s the way government IT contracting works.”
Tanya Talaga (The Globe and Mail) on the question of how we grown numb to the suicide of Indigenous children: “In another world, the death of 11-year-old Elaina Cecilia Nancy Beardy would have shaken Canada’s smug belief that this country offers all its children a good and safe start. Her death would have been the lead story on newscasts and in newspapers, inspiring governments and all of society to move mountains to ensure this never happens again. Instead, Elaina’s death by suicide on Oct. 28 scarcely received any public mention or attention outside of her family’s northern Ontario communities of Kingfisher Lake First Nation and the neighbouring Sachigo Lake First Nation, situated about 350 km and 450 km north of Sioux Lookout, respectively.”
Max Fawcett (The National Observer) on how Pierre Poilievre’s mouth just opened the door to a Liberal comeback: “If Justin Trudeau finds himself celebrating a political comeback for the ages at some point in 2025, he’ll probably look back to this past week as the point where it began. It won’t show up yet in the polls, which still have Trudeau’s Liberals well behind Pierre Poilievre’s Conservative Party of Canada. But for the first time in a long time, Trudeau and his team have a fighting chance. That’s because, on two separate occasions, Poilievre exposed a weakness in his otherwise formidable political armour that they could — and should – exploit.”
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