After two recent smash-and-grab robberies at Newmarket’s Upper Canada Mall — including one that took place while York Regional Police were on-site for a holiday charity event — Newmarket–Aurora MP Sandra Cobena is expressing renewed concerns about public safety.
Cobena, a Conservative MP, raised the issue in the House of Commons last week as she criticized the federal government’s Bail and Sentencing Reform Act, Bill C-14. In a news release, she argued that the legislation falls short of what is needed to address growing crime across Canada.
Prime Minister Mark Carney has defended the bill, saying it will strengthen the criminal justice system by tightening bail provisions, allowing consecutive sentences for repeat offenders, introducing new aggravating factors for sentencing, and eliminating house arrest options for certain serious sexual offences.
Cobena, citing what she described as two “violent” incidents at Upper Canada Mall within a month, said she believes the Liberal government’s approach is inadequate. She called Bill C-14 “a hollow echo” of earlier Conservative proposals and described it as a “Band-Aid approach” to what she characterized as a nationwide crime crisis.
Her remarks came days before the Ontario government announced plans to introduce tougher provincial measures. On Nov. 24, Premier Doug Ford’s government said it will bring forward legislation requiring accused individuals — or their sureties — to provide a full cash security deposit as ordered by the court.
