1. Opening Remarks

Opening Remarks

The Honourable David Lametti
Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada for the Supplementary Estimates (B), 2022-23

Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights

Ottawa, Ontario

December 5, 2022

Check against delivery

Mr. Chair,

I am pleased to be here as the Committee studies the Supplementary Estimates (B), 2022-23 for the Department of Justice Canada.

I would like to start by acknowledging that we are located on the traditional territory of the Algonquin Anishinabeg Nation.

I am joined today by François Daigle, Deputy Minister of Justice and Deputy Attorney General of Canada; Michael Sousa, Senior Assistant Deputy Minister, Policy Sector, and Bill Kroll, Chief Financial Officer and Assistant Deputy Minister.

Over the last year, the Department of Justice Canada has continued its work to support enormous demands on our justice system.

We have made good progress on pandemic recovery ― addressing court backlogs and strengthening our justice system to better support those most affected.

We are continuing to support government-wide priorities such as addressing inequality, systemic racism and discrimination; advancing reconciliation with Indigenous peoples; and assisting newcomers to Canada and refugees.

The funds we seek in the Supplementary Estimates (B), 2022-23 will allow us to build on this work.

The Justice Canada Portfolio is seeking a total of $63.3 million in the Supplementary Estimates (B), 2022-23.

These funds will help the Department deliver on key commitments to transform our justice system and make sure that it truly focuses on the people it serves.

This includes ensuring that our justice system is accessible and equitable to all people in Canada ― no matter their background, their income level, their beliefs or their gender identity.

This work is tied to our overarching goal to address systemic discrimination and the overrepresentation of Indigenous people, Black people and members of other marginalized communities in the criminal justice system. All people in Canada should be able to access fair and just treatment.

We are also continuing our work, together with Indigenous peoples, to achieve the objectives of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act and make progress toward reconciliation.

Let me explain how the Supplementary Estimates funds will allow us to deliver on these priorities.

Immigration and Refugee Legal Aid

Access to justice is a fundamental Canadian value and an integral part of a fair and just society. A strong legal aid system is one of the pillars that supports Canada’s justice system.

We are continuing to make investments to address legal aid pressures and ensure the ongoing delivery of legal aid in immigration and refugee matters.

As Committee members will note, the Supplementary Estimates (B) include $43.5 million for immigration and refugee legal aid ― a figure we announced in Budget 2022. This raised the total annual funding to $55 million for 2022-23.

This investment is critical ― without it, some legal aid service providers would only be forced to withdraw services.

Without proper resources and services, we would see delays at the Immigration and Refugee Board and the Federal Court. This, in turn, would hinder government investments aimed at improving asylum system processing capacity.

This funding feeds into the Department’s work to fulfil the Government of Canada’s commitment in Budget 2021 to address systemic racism in Canada.

Addressing Systemic Discrimination

The Supplementary Estimates (B) also include funding to support our efforts to address the overrepresentation of Indigenous people, Black and members of other marginalized communities in our justice system.

One part of this is preventing recidivism, particularly for offenders from marginalized and vulnerable populations. This requires a criminal justice system that includes an exit door – where we are focusing on efforts to heal.

We have seen a growing demand across the country for court-supervised addictions treatment programs provided by drug treatment courts. To help meet this need, Budget 2021 announced $40.4 million over 5 years starting in 2021-22, and $10 million ongoing, for the Department of Justice and the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions. Of this announcement, we are seeking $5.9 million through these Supplementary Estimates to support this initiative.

This funding includes $24.5 million over five years and $7 million ongoing in contribution funding for the Department of Justice. This will support the provision of these programs, which help offenders break the cycle of addiction and find a better way forward.

Further to this work, the Supplementary Estimates (B) include a re-profiling of $150,000 to provide culturally appropriate legal information and resources, as well as to pilot legal advice services for racialized individuals. This adjustment would allow the Department to maintain the commitment to invest $21.5 million over five years, as announced in Budget 2021.

Taken together, these measures work to support justice for all. This brings me to our efforts to advance reconciliation with Indigenous peoples ― which is central to so much of my mandate.

Indigenous Justice

A key piece to reconciliation is ensuring the effective implementation of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act, in consultation and cooperation with Indigenous peoples.

We are currently undertaking a broad and distinctions-based engagement process with Indigenous peoples to develop an action plan by June 2023.

We are also supporting Indigenous Services Canada and Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada in their work to implement An Act respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis children, youth and families, which came into force on January 1, 2020.

As part of this, Justice Canada is requesting $510,000 in Supplementary Estimates (B) to help increase our capacity to provide expert legal advice on issues related to the interpretation and implementation of section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982.

We expect that these additional resources will be essential over a five-year period, given the national scope of the legal issues, the magnitude of their implications and their novelty.

Conclusion

Mr. Chair, in sum, the Supplementary Estimates (B) will allow the Department of Justice Canada to continue playing a vital role in creating a strong, equitable and effective justice system that protects Canadians, their communities, and their rights.

Thank you for your time. I am now happy to take questions.