After ranking as the city with the highest crime rate in Canada last year, Kelowna city council and its recently elected mayor unanimously passed a motion in support of Bill C-283, also known as the “End the Revolving Door” Act.
On Monday, Mayor Ted Dyas and council voted to write a letter of support for the private member’s bill, which was sponsored by local Kelowna–Lake Country Conservative MP Tracy Gray.
Gray attended the Jan. 16 meeting to shore up support for the legislation, which passed its first reading in the House of Commons last June.
The bill hopes to amend the Criminal Code by giving the Commissioner of the Correctional Service of Canada the ability to designate a prison an “addiction treatment facility” so that inmates can be assigned to participate in a rehab program while serving their sentence.
In an emailed statement to True North, Gray cited the fact that over 70% of those incarcerated in federal prisons had addiction issues and went on to reoffend.
“The Liberal government, with their soft on crime justice policies, have taken the wrong approach which has failed to end the revolving door in our prisons. Instead, they’ve fostered a catch-and-release system where violent offenders return to the street,” said Gray.
“Liberal legislation has also reduced the consequences for violent crimes and have instead put their focus on targeting law-abiding hunters and sport shooters. Disappointingly, the Liberals have also indicated during Parliamentary debate that they will vote against my legislation.”
According to Gray, however, she has received positive support from the local community which in Aug. 2022 saw skyrocketing crime rates.
Federal data shows that Kelowna ranked first nationally when it came to the Crime Severity Index, which measures crime based on seriousness and other factors. Statistics Canada found that Kelowna’s crime rate sat at 11,112 incidents reported per 100,000 residents.
Mayor Dyas unseated incumbent Colin Basran last fall. While campaigning Dyas repeatedly pledged to deal with the city’s public safety issues.
Dyas has promised to expand the city’s Police and Crisis Team and hire a full-time mental health nurse for the local jail and further support for the Kelowna RCMP .
“They’re having to deal with these files, and they’re also having to stay with these individuals as they are admitted into Kelowna General Hospital, and it is consuming up massive amounts of time,” Dyas said in August.
“Now they’re unable to get out and deal with the other situations within this community that our community needs for them to deal with.”
