SoVote

Decentralized Democracy

Member of Parliament

Randall Garrison

  • Member of Parliament
  • Member of Parliament
  • NDP
  • Esquimalt—Saanich—Sooke
  • British Columbia
  • Voting Attendance: 66%
  • Expenses Last Quarter: $148,586.11

  • Government Page
Context: House Hansard - 313 - May/10/24
Mr. Randall Garrison (Esquimalt—Saanich—Sooke, NDP)
  • May/10/24 12:04:44 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, the Liberal government promised to remove criminal records for simple possession of drugs for more than 250,000 Canadians. After two years, we are still waiting for the government to act, because the Liberals are saying it is hard to do. What is hard is not being able to get employment or housing, or to travel to see loved ones, because of a criminal record. These records disproportionately impact indigenous and racialized Canadians, and all those living in poverty. Will the Liberals keep their promise and meet the November legal deadline to make sure all of the simple possession records are removed?
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Context: House Hansard - 90 - Jun/16/22
Mr. Randall Garrison
  • Jun/16/22 12:14:12 p.m.
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  • Re: Bill C-9 
Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for Skeena—Bulkley Valley for his kind words on my role on the committee. I just want to say, before I answer the question specifically, that the removal of criminal records for personal possession potentially affects 250,000 Canadians, so this would have a big impact. If we are worried about public safety, we need to make sure that those who have come in conflict with the law have every opportunity to reintegrate themselves into society, to support their families and to get things back on track. Bill C-5 would help do that. With respect to Bill C-9, I have been frustrated, I would say, for almost five years now because we have not simply gotten this done. I think there is agreement, and like the member for Skeena—Bulkley Valley, I would recommend to House leaders that we find a way to move this bill forward very quickly.
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Context: House Hansard - 79 - Jun/1/22
Mr. Randall Garrison
  • Jun/1/22 6:14:36 p.m.
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  • Re: Bill C-5 
Mr. Speaker, the parliamentary secretary and I worked very co-operatively during the hearings on this bill to try to find some serious improvements, and the government has certainly stepped forward to accept them. I am going to use an example that is maybe a little counterintuitive to show why I think this is so important. The government has an existing program to expunge criminal records. In two years, of those 250,000 records, the government's program expunged 484 records. That is why I was insisting that this process has to be automatic, with no application and no fee. These records simply disappear. Both the Minister of Justice and the Minister of Public Safety met with me personally to discuss this, and I thank them for their support.
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