‘Tough on crime’ claim tough to swallow

Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 26/06/2023 (326 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

If the Stefanson government were truly interested in beefing up Manitoba’s prosecution branch — as it claimed to be this week — it would have signed a new contract with Crown attorneys more than a year ago.

Instead, prosecutors are still without a new collective agreement, senior Crowns have left in droves, and those who have remained have been saddled with record caseloads.

It’s hardly the kind of commitment one would expect from a “tough on crime” government.

The Tories know they can’t win the Oct. 3 provincial election on health care and education.

They’ve done too much damage in both areas to convince Manitobans if re-elected they would provide hospitals and public schools with sustainable funding. Given their record over the past seven years, it’s simply not believable.

Instead, they’re throwing everything they’ve got at justice.

The Tories are using government money to buy billboards with depictions of criminals wearing ankle bracelets and running ads claiming government is aggressively “tracking” violent criminals. It’s part of a multimillion-dollar gimmick (paid for by taxpayers) called “real results — concrete action.”

As part of the campaign, the Tories have resurrected a police unit mandated to collar criminals wanted on outstanding court violations, after gutting a similar program several years ago (a troubling admission that they haven’t been tracking those offenders for several years).

They’re also boasting they have forced the federal government to make it harder for violent criminals to get bail, a claim more hyperbole than “concrete action.”

If government were serious… It would have recruited and retained Crown attorneys by providing them with competitive salaries and ensured staffing levels kept pace with the surge in caseloads.

The latest shtick is trying to convince the public they’re bolstering the ranks of the prosecution branch “to enhance” government’s ability “to prosecute serious criminal offences.”

If government were serious about that, it would have negotiated with prosecutors more than a year ago, and concluded a new contract before it expired in March 2022. It would have recruited and retained Crown attorneys by providing them with competitive salaries and ensured staffing levels kept pace with the surge in caseloads.

The Stefanson government did the opposite.

It failed to negotiate a new contract with Crown attorneys and talks are now going to arbitration. Prosecutors have gone 15 months without a new contract.

That’s not a commitment to “enhance” Manitoba’s ability to prosecute criminals. It’s evidence the prosecution branch is not a priority for government. Only now, three months before an election, are the Tories committing to more funding for Crown attorneys.

The province’s failure to maintain adequate staffing levels in the prosecutions branch is particularly troubling. As crime numbers soar and more cases go to court, Crowns have been saddled with unmanageable workloads. Worse, many senior Crowns have resigned, leaving fewer experienced prosecutors to handle more complex cases.

A government dedicated to a well-staffed and well-funded prosecutions branch would not have allowed that to happen.

The irony behind the Tories’ newfound “tough on crime” campaign is violent crime has skyrocketed under their watch. It’s unfair to blame any government for rising crime rates because the causes are complex and not easily solved. Crime is on the rise across Canada and is not exclusive to Manitoba.

Still, if all the measures the Stefanson government says it now plans to implement are effective ways to combat crime, why weren’t they done over the past seven years?

Instead of taking responsibility, Premier Heather Stefanson continues to blame the federal government. She claims Ottawa should do “more” to reform the criminal code to reduce crime, but doesn’t specify what changes she would like to see.

The premier is simply trying to create the perception she is “tough on crime” by using meaningless platitudes she hopes will resonate with voters.

“Manitobans have the right to feel safe in their communities and the federal government needs to do more on continuing bail reform and tougher sentencing to keep criminals off the streets,” she said in a release Tuesday from the Western Premiers’ Conference in Whistler, B.C.

Like what?

The federal government introduced a bail reform bill earlier this year all provinces (including Manitoba), as well as Canada’s police chiefs, supported.

What proposed changes beyond those is the premier talking about?

Stefanson won’t say because she doesn’t have any specific proposals. The premier is simply trying to create the perception she is “tough on crime” by using meaningless platitudes she hopes will resonate with voters.

It’s hard to imagine this gimmick having much effect Oct. 3.

tom.brodbeck@freepress.mb.ca