The Liberal government will table a bill this fall introducing stricter bail conditions and sentencing for some crimes, particularly those involving organized crime, human trafficking, home invasion and car theft, Justice Minister Sean Fraser said in an interview.
鈥淚t鈥檚 perhaps obvious, given the tenor around the criminal justice system, that reforms are in order,鈥 Fraser told The Canadian Press.
The government will consider including additional reforms but 鈥渁t minimum鈥 will implement the crime policies the Liberals promised during the spring federal election, Fraser said.
Fraser was named justice minister by Prime Minister Mark Carney in May, following an election campaign which saw Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre blame the Liberals for a wave of violent crime.
In their campaign platform, the Liberals in turn promised to make bail more difficult to get for some offences, including car thefts involving violence or organized crime, home invasions, and some human trafficking and smuggling offences.
They also promised tougher sentencing guidelines for repeat car thieves and violent and organized crime, and to allow for consecutive sentencing for some cases of car theft and for serious and violent offences.
Fraser said some parts of the country have seen an increase in certain kinds of criminal activity.
鈥淎uto thefts, though they may be down in the GTA this year compared to last, we have seen a trend where it was becoming a bigger problem,鈥 he noted, adding some of that was driven by organized crime.
The changes to the law will establish a stronger deterrent, Fraser said.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not just a reaction to something you read about in a headline,鈥 he said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 meant to send a signal to deter problematic behavior that you want to address, to help people feel safe.鈥
Fraser said the government will consult on its plans and he鈥檚 open to suggestions based on expertise and evidence.
This bail reform plan comes two years after the Liberals introduced other bail-reform legislation in 2023. That came after calls from provincial leaders and many police chiefs to make bail more difficult to access for repeat violent offenders.
The bill, which took effect in January 2024, made changes to bail for some firearms and weapons offences, and some circumstances in which the alleged crime involves intimate partner violence.
The plan to introduce tougher measures comes after years of Conservatives accusing the Liberals of taking a 鈥渟oft鈥 approach to crime.
Asked whether the coming legislation amounts to an admission the Conservatives had a point, Fraser said he views it 鈥渄ifferently.鈥
鈥淲e hear from Canadians more broadly that there is a challenge with the criminal justice system,鈥 he said. 鈥淭here is a challenge with the bail system.鈥
Fraser said that while he takes issue with what he called the Conservatives鈥 鈥渟implistic鈥 slogans, Canadians across the country have 鈥渞eal concerns鈥 that can鈥檛 be dismissed 鈥渏ust because it鈥檚 being raised in the House of Commons in a way that some may find inconvenient.鈥
He said that while there are areas where the federal government can do more, provincial governments 鈥 some of which have called for federal bail reform 鈥 have a big role to play.
That role includes making sure judges and justices of the peace who make bail decisions have proper training, and detention centres have enough capacity, Fraser said.
鈥淲e want to come into this conversation knowing that we鈥檝e taken care of the challenges that fall within the federal government鈥檚 purview, but we also want to enter a conversation with provinces and territories to say that we are not the only cook in the kitchen,鈥 he said.
Fraser added the federal government also wants to bring provinces and territories together to work on gathering the data needed to address crime and justice issues at the local level.
鈥淭he circumstances in rural Nova Scotia may not reflect the circumstances in downtown Toronto or in Canada鈥檚 North,鈥 he noted.
The federal government wants to take a wider approach to crime prevention that also addresses mental health, addictions, youth employment and affordable housing, Fraser said.
鈥淲e also want to make sure that we go upstream and prevent fewer people from falling into a criminal lifestyle,鈥 he said.