Latest updates

Fresh Start’s 2024 budget submissions are now available here. You can view them by clicking on the post and then by clicking the button below.

In October 2022, a group of Fresh Start Coalition members — including members of our Community Expertise Committee — had a virtual meeting with the Minister of Public Safety, the Honourable Marco Mendicino. The meeting provided an important opportunity to ensure the Minister heard directly from people affected by criminal records. Following the meeting, we …

Continue reading “Read our latest letter to the Minister of Public Safety”

Find out why changing the way Canada deals with old criminal records would be transformative for thousands of survivors of intimate partner violence. Read the op-ed in the Toronto Star by Fresh Start Coalition members Emilie Coyle (Executive Director of the Canadian Association of Elizabeth Fry Societies), Pamela Cross (Legal Director of Luke’s Place), and …

Continue reading “Support intimate partner violence survivors – change the law”

We’re doing a summer advocacy blitz to make sure that the issue of record suspensions is a government priority heading into the Fall. Pitch in by emailing your elected representative – a template email is below. Please personalize it to make it your own – these emails are best if they speak of your own …

Continue reading “Summer advocacy blitz – write your MP!”

From April to June 2022, many supporters of the Fresh Start Coalition participated in stakeholder consultations launched by Public Safety Canada in order to explore the possibility of an automatic system for sealing criminal records. A wide range of organizations and individuals involved with the Fresh Start Coalition made their voices heard, either in writing …

Continue reading “The Fresh Start Coalition emphasizes the need to fix Canada’s criminal records system during government consultations”