The Tories are proposing changes to the federal corrections system that they say will strengthen victims' rights and increase offenders' responsibilities.
Public Safety Minister Peter Van Loan introduced the legislative amendments in Parliament Tuesday.
"This Government is taking a new approach to corrections by putting a greater focus on public safety," Van Loan said in a press release.
"We are also putting the rights of victims first, by proposing changes to help keep them better informed."
The proposed key reforms to the Corrections and Conditional Release Act include:
- The "protection of society" becoming the paramount principle of corrections and conditional release.
- Enshrining in law, a victim's right to participate in parole board hearings.
- Authorizing police to arrest without the need for a warrant, an offender breaking their release conditions.
- Emphasizing the importance of taking into consideration the seriousness of an offence in National Parole Board decision-making.
Van Loan said the changes are being proposed so that offenders are more accountable for their actions and rehabilitation is more effective.
The changes are in response to a December 2007 report from the Correctional Service Canada Independent Review Panel.
The report found that Canada's prison population is more violent and requires more intervention and rehabilitation strategies than in the past.
In Budget 2008, the government allocated nearly $500 million over five years to create change in the federal correctional system.
