Ford government introduces anti-crime legislation
Ontario is moving ahead with new legislation to tackle crime.
The Protecting Ontario’s Streets and Communities Act includes measures that support victims of human trafficking, crack down on the illegal drug trade and make it easier to enforce restraining orders.
Solicitor General Michael Kerzner says it builds on previous actions to strengthen public safety and hold offenders accountable.
“I have people every day that say public safety is right at the top of the list, and we want to make sure that they know their government is taking it seriously,” says Kerzner.
Other initiatives in the proposed bill include:
- Increase public awareness and protect communities by amending the Community Safety and Policing Act, 2019, to authorize the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) Commissioner to publish information on a provincial public website about high-risk offenders, including high-risk sex offenders, when a chief of police issues a community notification. If passed, the new website is expected to be online by April 2027.
- Help survivors of human trafficking rebuild their lives by providing up to $50,000 in debt relief for victims who were forced or coerced into debt by their traffickers.
- Crack down on illegal drug production by prohibiting the possession, use or sale of designated devices such as pill presses for the purpose of making illicit drugs, and prohibiting the possession, production or trafficking of precursor chemicals to make illegal drugs.
- Set clearer rules of conduct for tow truck drivers at collision scenes and strengthen qualification standards for tow operators, tow truck drivers and vehicle storage operators.
- Protect victims by allowing restraining orders issued in other provinces and territories to be enforced in Ontario without requiring an additional court declaration to make them enforceable.
- Amend the Private Security and Investigative Services Act, 2005, to strengthen public safety by modernizing training, oversight and licensing requirements.
- Amend the Provincial Offences Act to resolve cases faster by allowing prosecutors and defendants to enter plea agreements without judicial oversight.
- Reduce wait times for police record checks for people working or volunteering with vulnerable populations such as children, seniors and people with disabilities, while maintaining strong safeguards.
- Add more canine teams to increase contraband searches in adult correctional institutions; and
- Restrict the use and future purchases of Chinese-made drones for government use, helping protect sensitive provincial information.
The government also intends to review a strategy that addresses the root cause of violence against Indigenous women, children and gender-diverse people.
Kernzer says the measures build on actions the province has already taken to help law enforcement, corrections and the public.
“What this legislation does is it just sends a message across Ontario that we don’t just say we’re tough on crime. We have to have actions that show it.”
