View From the Legislature

In summer of last year, Manitoba began to raise the alarm about what was happening regarding bail in our justice system. With concerning frequency, Manitobans were seeing individuals charged with violent offences while they were already out on bail on charges for another violent offence.

As Minister of Justice for Manitoba, I began asking the question, what has changed? One of the things we quickly heard was that changes to the federal Criminal Code made by the Liberal government in 2019 had made bail easier to obtain, even for those charged with very violent offences. As a result, Manitoba began to call for changes to bail provisions. Looking at the Manitoba context, this took the form of seeking new reverse onus provisions for bail for crimes that involved knives or bear spray. Both of these were seen as a specific and growing concern in Manitoba.

Applying a reverse onus on an accused seeking bail doesn’t mean that bail can’t be granted. It simply requires that instead of bail being presumed, in some specific cases an accused has to demonstrate why they should receive bail. Currently, it is very difficult in almost all cases to have bail denied.

In October of last year, justice ministers from across Canada met in Halifax and, on behalf of Manitoba, I brought forward the concerns regarding bail. Somewhat surprisingly, every province agreed that there was a significant and growing problem. At that meeting, after hearing the concerns, the federal Minister of Justice agreed to take what he heard away and bring forward proposed changes to the federal Criminal Code at a subsequent meeting. And then, last month, all Premiers in Canada signed a letter to the Prime Minister also calling for bail reform.

Last week, because we had not been advised of any changes, I joined with the Minister of Justice for Saskatchewan in again questioning the status of bail reform. Shortly after, we were advised that the federal Minister of Justice was inviting all provincial ministers to Ottawa early in March to outline proposed changes to Canada’s bail legislation.

While it is positive that a meeting has now officially been set, the reality is that the goal that Manitoba started with last summer was not simply a dedicated meeting on bail reform but rather substantial change. Manitobans and Canadians are rightly concerned about the level of crime that they see happening. Bail reform is not a single solution, but it is part of a broader series of changes that need to happen to swing the pendulum back in favour of community safety.

I look forward to meeting with my provincial counterparts from across Canada to hear the proposed changes by the federal government. As importantly, we need to continue to act across all levels of government to prevent crime at its roots, and to protect communities from those who are committed to reoffending. Our government will continue to be a leader in expressing these concerns and acting on behalf of Manitobans.