Our Member of Parliament has initiated discussion on a bold change in the justice system.

Justice Minister Vic Toews suggests it may be time to eliminate preliminary hearings, a step that determines if there's enough evidence to proceed to trial.  Toews says police chiefs and others have told him the step is time-consuming and contributes little.  He notes modern developments in the law such as the Charter of Rights and Freedoms may provide sufficient protection to accused persons so that pre-trial hearings are no longer required.
Toews expects it will take a long time to get approval for such a change because of the many players involved, including ten attourneys general and various interest groups.