Standing Committee on Public Accounts

Comité permanent des comptes publics

For immediate release

Ottawa, November 07, 2023 -

PARLIAMENT HILL – The Auditor General of Canada found in a 2022 investigation that Correctional Service Canada (CSC) did not provide timely access to correctional programs to support offenders’ reintegration into communities, including programs specific to women, Indigenous peoples, and visible minorities. Systemic barriers limited access to programs and services that support successful reintegration, particularly for Indigenous and Black offenders.

The administrative process for assigning security classifications resulted in disproportionately high numbers of Indigenous and Black offenders being placed at higher levels of security. Very few offenders were able to complete their correctional programs before they were eligible to apply for parole. While the majority of offenders were released on parole before the end of their sentences, higher numbers of Indigenous and Black offenders remained in custody longer and at higher levels of security until their release.

A report by the House of Commons Standing Committee on Public Accounts, presented today by Committee Chairman John Williamson, makes six recommendations to ensure that the Auditor General’s recommendations are addressed, and that CSC provide evidence of this to the Committee through progress reports.