Victims of crime deserve to have a stronger, more effective voice in the criminal justice system. For far too long, the scales of justice tipped in favor of criminals and neglected those who had been affected by their crimes. That’s why the Government of Canada has made it a priority to rebalance those scales and help ensure the rights of victims are respected throughout the criminal justice system.

An extensive consultation process led up to these reforms. In recent months, Justice Minister
Peter MacKay travelled to every province and territory to hear from victims. Their valuable feedback on how the federal government could better address the needs of victims of crime will help give them a stronger voice in Canada’s criminal justice system. As Prime Minister Stephen Harper noted, “Our Government wants victims of crime across this country to know that we have listened to their concerns and that we are squarely on their side.”

The landmark Canadian Victims Bill of Rights will help deliver on this commitment by permanently entrenching the rights of victims into a single document at the federal level – a first in Canadian history.  Our aim is to transform our justice system by providing statutory rights for victims of crime. Through this historic document, victims would be guaranteed the right to information, protection, participation and restitution.

Their right to information would ensure victims are made aware of available victim services and programs, as well as information relating to the investigation, prosecution and sentencing of the person who harmed them.  Their right to protection would ensure the security and privacy of victims is considered at all stages of the criminal justice process – including measures to protect them from intimidation and retaliation – and provide victims with the ability to request their identity be protected from public disclosure.

At the same time, the right of a victim’s participation in the criminal justice system would also be entrenched.  This would establish their right to present a victim impact statement and ensure their views are considered at various stages of the criminal justice process.

Finally, a victim’s right to restitution would also be guaranteed as part of this legislation. For certain offices, victims would have a right to seek financial compensation from their offender.

This important legislation builds on our government’s strong record of supporting victims of crime.  Previously, we delivered the Federal Victims Strategy and established a permanent advocate for victims through the Office of the Federal Ombudsman for Victims of Crime.

We have also invested over $120 million into victim-oriented initiatives and provided over
$10 million to Child Advocacy Centres across the country to help young victims of crime.

Canadians need to know that their justice system is working for them. Innocent victims of crime deserve to have clear, enforceable rights and protections in our criminal justice system.  Through the Canadian Victims Bill of Rights, our government is making sure victims are treated with the respect and fairness that they deserve.

You can learn more by entering “Victims Bill of Rights” in the search field at www.pm.gc.ca.

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