Commissioner's Speeches

Senate Standing Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs with respect to Bill C-25

Remarks by:

Don Head, Commissioner, Correctional Service of Canada
September 30, 2009

Good evening Chair and Committee members, I am happy to appear before you this evening to respond to any questions you may have about the Correctional Service of Canada’s response to implementing Bill C-25

Just before we begin, I would like to tell you about my background in the Criminal Justice System.

I have been the Commissioner of the Correctional Service of Canada since June 27, 2008.

Prior to holding this position, I was CSC’s Senior Deputy Commissioner since 2002. I actually began my career as a correctional officer in 1978.

Outside of CSC, I have also spent time working in Provincial and Territorial Correctional Systems, first in the Yukon as the warden of the territorial jail and as acting Director of community and correctional services and then as the Assistant Deputy Minister, responsible for probation and correctional services for Department of Corrections and Public Safety in Saskatchewan.

I believe my experience in both the territorial, provinical, and federal correctional systems has provided me a good understanding as to what is required to respond to Bill C-25.

As current Co-Chair of the Federal/Provincial/Territorial Heads of Corrections, I have also participated in many meetings and conversations on the subject of the growing pressures in the remand facilities across the country.

When looking at the anticipated impact of Bill C-25 on CSC, it is important to note that while additional offenders would now receive a federal sentence and come to CSC, the majority of offenders impacted would be those who would receive a federal sentence but would now receive a longer sentence – extending their time in the federal correctional system.

The increase of offenders admitted to federal penitentiaries as a result of this legislative amendment will require CSC, in the short term, to implement temporary accommodation measures such as increasing the use of double bunking and additional temporary structures to house offenders.

In the long term, CSC aims to construct more permanent accommodation, including the construction of new units or institutions to manage the population growth.

It should also be noted that CSC will also need to expand its capacity to deliver education, correctional programs and interventions, employment skills development training, and community supervision in order to ensure we deliver the targeted public safety results.

Although this Bill will introduce new challenges, the Correctional Service will continue to fulfill its mandate to manage the sentences of federal offenders and to ensure that we deliver the public safety results that Canadians expect everyday.

Thank you and I welcome any questions you may have.