Tories' crime bill passes in House

By Meagan Fitzpatrick, CBC News Posted: Mar 12, 2012

The Conservative government's controversial crime bill has passed a final vote in the House of Commons, a few days later than the government expected.

The Tories had planned to pass Bill C-10 last Wednesday, but the NDP was able to delay the last day of debate until Friday and push the final vote to Monday. Read Full Article Here

Lobbyists Behind Omnibus Crime Bill Aimed at Privatizing Prisons

By Min Reyes Posted: January 30, 2012

In a period of declining crime rate and supposedly out of hand national deficit, Canadians are beginning to wonder why our government is so intent on passing such a costly legislation that challenges the most basic reasoning. There has not been one reasonable justification for the Harper Government’s Omnibus Crime Bill. That is until one connects the dots…

the Justice Policy Institute (JPI) released a report chronicling the political strategies of private prison companies "working to make money through harsh policies and longer sentences." The report’s authors note that while the total number of people in prison increased less than 16 percent, the number of people held in private federal and state facilities increased by 120 and 33 percent, correspondingly. Government spending on corrections has soared since 1997 by 72 percent, up to $74 billion in 2007. And the private prison industry has raked in tremendous profits. Last year the two largest private prison companies — Corrections Corporation of America (CCA) and GEO Group — made over $2.9 billion in revenue. [ source ]

According the Justice Policy Institute, there are two major corporations at play in the political sphere of private correctional services: Corrections Corporation of America and The GEO Group Inc. What you do not know is that GEO Group Inc. is an active registered lobbyist that deals with the following branches of the Canadian Federal Government:

• Correctional Service of Canada (CSC)
• Public Safety Canada (PS)
• Public Works and Government Services Canada (PWGSC)
• Public-Private Partnerships Canada, Solicitor General Canada (SGC)

We urge you read through the reports and articles below and put the Omnibus Crime Bill in perspective. What is the relation between GEO Group Inc. and the Harper Government’s unreasonable, unjustifiable Bill C-10? Read Full Article Here