Ottawa: A bill has been introduced by the federal government and if passed, it will make changes to Canada’s registry of sex offenders. In the meantime, it will be decided in what format a sex offender should be placed in the National Tracking System, while those who do not repeat such crimes can also be exempted from registering in this tracking system.
The proposed changes to the existing law have been made keeping in mind the October 2022 Supreme Court judgment which held that the practice of automatically registering all persons committing sexual offences is unconstitutional.
With this system, the tracking record also includes the names of those who have committed a sexual crime forever.
While quashing these provisions of the Criminal Court, the Supreme Court had given parliament a year’s time to express its opinion on the decision. Bill S-12 was introduced in the Senate by Senator Mark Gould on Wednesday. The bill will first pass through the Senate and then be discussed in the House.
Amendments to the Criminal Code, The Sex Offenders Information Registration Act and the International Transfer of Offenders Act will be discussed. Justice Minister David Lametti said sexual crimes are the worst forms of violence. This has a devastating impact on the lives of women and girls, mostly women and girls.
The police must have the necessary tools to investigate such cases so that the perpetrators of such crimes can be taught a lesson. Lametti was accompanied by Women and Gender Equality and Youth Minister Marcy Lane.