They give new tools to the police and the judiciary to deal more effectively with crime. Your continued input and partnership in key government initiatives such as DNA shows the value of greater cooperation and joint forces operations between police agencies The RCMP's Violent Crime Linkage Analysis System, or ViCLAS, is another case in point. Canadians need the input and cooperation of every police force in Canada to make this system work to its full potential. As you probably know, both the Attorney General of British Columbia and the Solicitor General of Ontario have directed that police forces under their jurisdiction report violent crimes to this national database. As the recent Toronto case concerning a suspect in the Alison Parrott murder shows, we have a much better chance of tracking down and prosecuting violent criminals when we all work together.
Partnership is a hallmark of greater efficiency and effectiveness between police agencies.
Mr. Gray sees you as an important partner in the building of a better system of criminal justice and he continues to count on the regular exchange of views with your executive. I think it is worth reflecting for a moment on this to put into perspective some of the issues I discussed earlier. We Canadians have the good fortune to live in a society that is the envy of most other peoples in the world. International comparisons consistently rank Canada very high as a safe, secure, fair, just and prosperous society. The United Nations has again this year identified Canada as the best place in the world in which to live.