CTV News Montreal

Updated: Thu Jan. 26 2012 4:56:04 PM

The Canadian Press

MONTREAL — Quebec announced Thursday that it will not pay for new prisons and other costs required to enforce the upcoming federal tough-on-crime legislation known as Bill C-10.

This strategy was revealed by Quebec Minister of Justice, Jean-Marc Fournier, in interview with The Associated Press Thursday.

He stated that Quebec is continuing to examine all of its legal options in order to avert having the new legislation apply to the province.

Fournier made the comments in Charlottetown while attending a Canadian conference of Ministers of Justice and Public Safety.

Bill C-10 increases punishment on criminals and young offenders and restricts parole conditions.

Fournier believes that enforcing the bill would cost the province an additional $500-$600 million plus $75 million to $100 million a year.

Quebec will not pay Ottawa's bills, said Fournier.

Fournier said Quebec prefers to spend on crime prevention and the rehabilitation of young offenders.

Comments are now closed for this story

elyk
Some people need to open their eyes and realize how much Canada has changed in the past 10 years. Crime rates are dropping yet our freedom is being taken away. It costs roughly $100,000 per year to incarcerate someone, and thats not including how much money the govenment is spending to build prisons. good for Quebec for standing up for whats right i don't think someone with a marijuana possession should go to jail, its less harmful then beer and coffee and was made illegal in the first place for racist reasons. i think its about time we look at the facts, and use marijuana and hemp to its full potential.

Ken
It should be noted. No one in Canada "pays Quebec's bills". Quebec gets about 1/6-1/5 of the total Federal budget allocated to it. Given it carries 1/6-1/5 of the population AND the GDP of Canada, this is only appropriate. If you want to pick on non-contributing provinces that get an excessive portion of transfers relative to economic value, I would look far more strongly at Atlantic provinces. However, all of this is effectively moot, each province gets resources equal to its needs. Equalization is such a miniscule portion of federal transfers, it might as well not even be discussed. It equals something like $18 billion out of a total federal budget of like $280 billion.

Steve
How foolish That Quebec will not pay ! If Quebec want separate from Canada , but Remember we are under Canada Period , because the money appears to be English and French also Ottawa made that Money in Factory printing , One thing , Quebec can not change the money to only French Language and the value of currency will be low value . Remember

Q=Quebec
U=Using
E=Everybody
B=Because
E=Everybody
C=Canadian !!!

We are grateful to be under Canada !!! never think of separating , if it does separate , i am sure that Canadians will get out of Quebec, cause they feel upsetting by it

sarah
Good... we dont need these silly jails anyways .. our crime rate is down.. the only superjail we need is the one for the Harper Government once the reign of terror on this country is finished

john j. pecchio
Prisons were designed to discipline criminals for their crimes and reform them to return back into society to live productive lives.
For over a century of reforming criminals lawmakers and prison bureaucrats continue to ignore the right discipline that will reduce repeat felons and Illegal Immigrants from committing most of the crimes in the United States.

&&&&&&&&&&

This article will inform the mind and startle the soul. Federal and State Prisons have deteriorated to their worst condition in the history of these institutions? They have changed from being run with dignity and strong security into a hellish nightmare where corruption is the norm. With the loss of positive leadership in our prisons came the increase of prisoner’s power, primarily caused by their ability to hide behind highly-defended “Civil Rights”, which has now taken precedence above all else. These rights allowed them to live without fear of strong retribution for their actions, thereby leading to a breakdown in inmate behavior and resulting in riots, fights, and physical and verbal abuse of prison workers.

In the early 1970s, when prisons started failing to reform criminals, a lack of administrative and prisoner developed. After many decades experimenting with several reform systems, lawmakers and prison bureaucrats still have a failing prison system, and have turned prison reform into just a name to keep the tax-dollars flowing into these institutions. There is no turning back the clock to what prison were intended for as long as these institutions continue to be so contaminated with flaws, imbedded with unthinking, unknowing or corrupted officials and political bureaucrats. The fear in prison staff is so devastating because they are forced to move daily between freedom and captivity, while walking a delicate line between administrative politics and the threat of inmate violence.

For years I survived many altercations with my superiors and dangerous inmates in a maximum-security prison. I finally reached my 25th year and was ready to retire. Prison security was now at the lowest point in prison history. And it all started years ago, when security leaders kept getting directives from Central Office’s to downplay misbehavior reports because they were backlogged with frivolous lawsuits and grievances from inmates, claiming, that their rights were being violated and correctional officers were using excessive use of force to control prison security.

In general, prisoners are now in control and manipulating the system. What I always feared would happen did happen. One morning in my shop I was brutally beaten by a 275 pound muscular prisoner. He was a cold-blooded serial killer serving two life terms for killing several people. Weeks before I was attack, I wrote several misbehavior reports to my boss and security heads that read; “Please remove this inmate from my shop because I could not control his behavior and he’s a threat to security.” All those reports were ignored and the inmate continued being hypocritical and dominating.

During the time I was writing those misbehavior reports, the inmate was setting me up. He threatened me in a letter to the Deputy Superintendent of Security who responded the same day in a return letter saying, “I will take care of it” but he never did. Nor was I warned of the inmates intentions to harm me. As a result of administrators lack of security, deceiving and cynical responses; I was almost beaten to death and would have never seen my loved ones again. Prison bureaucrats are a master of covering up their blunders when involving prison staff. In my case, they put me on accidental state disability for the rest of my life.

For therapeutic reasons, I begin writing about working in dangerous prisons and why our justice system is failing in our society.

My first book {Hell Behind Prison Walls} is my autobiography of working 25-years in a Maximum-Security Prison for the New York State Department of Corrections.

My second book, {The Devil’s Den of Prison and Justice} describes various crime stories in and out of prisons, why our Justice System and their courtrooms, have become a playground for criminal’s rights.

As the Author of my books and Website - www.johnpecchio.com I feel “IT IS TIME TO ACT. I HOPE THE DIVERSITY OF MY TRUE, COMPELLING AND GRIPPING STORIES WILL BE A POSITIVE INSTRUMENT IN PRISON REFORM.”

John J. Pecchio

Angloman
BWAAHAHAHAA.

Let's make a list kiddies of all the chumps who no nothing about Quebec -- yet still talk as if what they say matters!

Bitching about transfer payments -- check!
Complaining about one of teh founding languages - CHECK!
Ignoring the issue OH CHECKITY CHECK!

Go back to picking up cowflops farmerboys! Leave the improtant discussions to your betters who know htat crime has been DROPPPING for decades...

Alex Dms
Lmao!!! And Quebec wants to leave Canada and be a country in its own, yet they will not spend money on something like this. You think you will go to Ottawa and ask for money when you separate from Canada, this comment goes to all the separatists such as Pauline Marois. Don't be turkeys!!! Use your brains ppl. I LOVE CANADA!!!!

jayjay
We will only need 1 prison to house the Harper Government after they are convicted of crimes aginst humanity.

MIke in Ottawa
Let's not mix apples and oranges- transfer payments is not part of this this deal- The Federal governemt is the one saying that they want to be tough on crime...then man up and pay. And just to be clear, this is not a Quebec versus Canada issue, This is a Federal versus Provincial issue. TAX paying folks from Alberta, Sask or Ontario will have to find the $$$ to build and maintain more provincial prisions to be able to house the number of 'criminals' that will need to be locked up. This is going to cost us moucho $$$$. All this when Stats Canada says that the crime rate has been decreasing for the last several years. Another instance of facts getting in the way of a 'good' idea.

Bob
The rest of the provinces should follow Quebec's lead and refuse to support this idiotic bill. Perhaps the provinces, in some measure of unity, can help to stop this insanity!

Debbie
Quebec should definitely not pay for the implementation of the Conservatives crime bill because it is regressive and based on bad science. It's absolutely ridiculous and will make the problem worse and increase crime. It's nothing but stupidity coming from Ottawa since the Conservatives won their majority.

chris
i agree that no province should have to pay for this particular program. it should be only be federally funded. Since this was a platform of "tough on crime" of this elected government, i would expect that it was properly vetted for costs/benefits, with supporting financing to pay for it, at the federal level. I would suggest at the next election, if YOU (the voter) dont ask ALL candiates how specifically they want to pay for their promises,(and if their answers are not specific), then vote for someone else. We elected these people, and they are simply fulfilling one of their promises. (i did NOT vote Conservative )
i also agree with the premise of this program. While im not a victim of crime, nor do i know any victims, i would expect that if i was, or for those who are victims, that the harshest punishment possible be the rule, rather than the exception.
that said, there should be an equal amount/effort on crime prevention.
as for those " albertan's" @#$%ing up the country, please sir, step away from the keyboard, as any legitmate argument you have becomes invalid, and people consider you a fool.

Jon in Ontario
Ron- my thinking exactly. They don't want topay Ottawa's bills? Fine! Ottawa won't pay Quebec's bills either. They are the biggest drain on federal tax dollars through the transfer payments, AND they pay the lowest provincial tax of any province. I say it is time we stopped the payments and made them tax themselves appropriately.

Anthony Grillo
@francis bryant

what bills ?? i'd like to find out which bills you are talking about so i can discredit your comment some more.

mr_cb7
Good! Why should we have to fork over money to fund Harper's Pro American vision of a Canadian Police State.

Chris Bolton
You cannot on the one hand take a Federal Transfer Payment and then on the other tell the Federal Government that you will not pay for allocated services such as upgrading your Penal System. Either you are part of Confederation or you are not. Clearly Quebec's 40 years of "pay for my cake and let me eat it to" has become so brazen that they feel that this give me the money and shove off is a legitimate political move. Sorry, Quebec. Time for you to go out on your own - pay your own way for a change and finally get a dose of reality!

Michel1950
Yes Ottawa should withhold transfer payments, we live in Canada if this law is passed then so be it. And by the way Lagraham, I suggest you read the bill before commenting as it is obvious you don't know what you are talking about. The amount of people in Federal prisons based on Marijuana charges are not the most common far from it however in Provincial jails (Quebec) there are many, too many. The bill is aimed at major crimes and repeat offenders not recreational drug users. So many murders, rapes and other major crimes are committed by REPEAT offenders not doubt after being re-rehabilitated by the Quebec system. And I live in Quebec so I know only too well.

Kathryn
Yep....don't want to pay their share, withhold the same $ amount of transfer payments. Really tired of Quebec always being a taker.

Terry
Good for you Qubec. Now, if the rest of the Provinces will grow a set and also so no to Herr Harper, maybe we can get this country back from the Dictator.
Will somebody Harper Clown we are not American.

BC Ed
Way to go Quebec! When Ottawa decides to pay for treatment so criminal behaviours can be altered and improved, "the Harper govt" might find support for at least some of their less punitive measures.

Until then, many of us support you Quebec! You are right to refuse to pay for a dictator's whims. Good luck.

<3 Qc
Well done Mr. Fournier! Why should Canadians (and Quebecors) spend money on a "tough on crime bill" when crime has been declining since 1994. Quebec also has one of the lowest crime rates among the provinces because it focusses on rehabilitation. Maybe Harper should consider rehabilitation as an option instead of drafting legislation that will 1) lock up small-time criminals causing prisons to flood, and 2) be really expensive not only short term but long term as well. It's a really expensive bill that all Canadian's are going to front.

dotcommentor
if quebec refuses to pay for harpers make money on private prisons bill, and then refuses to cede transfer fubds then quebec should refuse to remit taxes

Matt
All provinces should do this. The bill is anti-Canadian and a huge waste of taxpayer money.

GWWH
I applaud the Quebec Government and the French Canadian People! Harper and the Preston Manning Reform Crazies are imposing their will on the rest of this country where the current policies of reform and education are working. I don't point at Albertans - they too are fellow Canadians ... however idological promises should not be the basis for law

chaostic
Just so we're clear, not all "Albertans" are conservative, unfortunately its just the vast majority of us that are brainless. Quebec and every province should have the right to refuse a crime bill put forth by Ottawa, but I definitely agree with the statement that Canada has been paying Quebec's bills for decades now. Slightly hypocritical on Quebec's part.

jb
how much is french costing the rest of the country annually?

i'm pretty sure that we're sick to death of paying that price. maybe it's time for a swap.

francis bryant
" Quebec will not pay Ottawa's bills"
That's fine- then why should Canada continue to pay Quebec's bills?

lagraham
Quebec is right not to pay for a bill based on nothing but ideology and lies. It really is pathetic the lack of intelligence coming out of the "Conservative" party. Not one professional recommends that we throw marijuana growers/smokers in jail and yet here we are.

When they (Albertans) are done $#!&ing up our country, maybe we'll be able to save it (again).

Ron
The feds should withhold transfer payment in equal amount to their refusal.