Parole for Peter Collins

We are writing in regards to a deportable prisoner, Peter Collins. He is a British citizen serving a life sentence in Bath Institution just outside of Kingston. In 1990 an immigration hearing was held and Mr. Collins was ordered deported. At that time Mr. Collins was advised that he was still eligible for Work Releases(WR), Unescorted Temporary Passes(UTA) and Day Parole(DP), all part of a gradual release process to prepare prisoners for a structured, safe and supported release to the community. Mr. Collins was also advised by his Correctional Service of Canada(CSC) Case Management Team(CMT) that, upon receiving full parole, he would be removed from Canada and returned to the UK. In 1992, Canada introduced the Corrections and Conditional Release Act (CCRA) and at this time Mr. Collins was again advised, by his CMT to follow his correctional treatment plan and participate in upgrading, employment and to continue working toward his rehabilitation and eventual gradual release. In 2002, amendments were made to the CCRA which completely excluded deportable foreign national prisoners from being permitted to participate in the very conditional release opportunities (WR, UTA, and DP) which help to reduce risk and ensure more successful community reintegration of prisoners. Mr. Collins was under the impression that he was still eligible to participate in conditional releases under the Canadian Interpretation Act (AI). It was not until the day before his 2008 parole hearing that he was advised, because of legislation changes to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act(IRPA) and the CCRA, that he was excluded from any community-based conditional release programs and therefore could not participate in the gradual, structured release program that CSC and National Parole Board(NPB) were demanding of him prior to his release. We are very concerned that Canada’s legislation excludes Mr. Collins from participating in the very conditional release opportunities which CSC and the NPB are demanding of him. The NPB and CSC have a mandate to provide correctional and conditional release opportunities to those prisoners who can be reintegrated into Canadian society. Surely Canadian legislators did not intend for deportation orders to be used to perpetually hold foreign national prisoners while imposing discriminatory and exclusionary policy interpretations. This situation creates a ‘catch 22’ that prevents any realistic opportunity for a release on par with Canadian citizens. Mr. Collins completed his correctional plan in 1998 and there are no other programs for him to participate in. He has been rated as a low risk for general or violent recidivism. His human rights work has earned him an award for his work in HIV/AIDS harm reduction. For these reasons, we urge his release and return to the UK at the earliest opportunity.