Bill 10, Protect Ontario Through Safer Streets and Stronger Communities Act, 2025

Summary#

Bill 10 (Protect Ontario Through Safer Streets and Stronger Communities Act, 2025) changes several Ontario laws on policing, courts, bail, family safety, auto theft, and illegal drug activity in buildings. The aim is to give police more tools, strengthen victim protection, tighten parts of the justice system, and target organized crime.

Key changes:

• Lets Ontario police ask for short‑term help from police services in other Canadian provinces or territories.
• Expands who can apply for a restraining order on behalf of a person at risk (with consent or court approval).
• Updates the sex offender registry to include more offences and apply child‑related travel reporting rules to more offenders.
• Allows police to seize electronic devices used to steal cars, even if possessing one is not a stand‑alone offence.
• Creates a new law that penalizes landlords who knowingly allow drug production or trafficking on their property, with strong police powers and large fines.
• Changes how provincial judges are recruited and placed, including a 5‑year commitment to a court location and new selection rules.
• Requires bail sureties (people who promise to supervise an accused) to share information set by regulation.

What it means for you#

• Landlords and property managers

  • You must not knowingly allow your unit or building to be used for drug production or trafficking. If you knew and did not take reasonable steps to stop it, you face heavy fines and possible jail time (for individuals) and cost recovery by police.
  • Police can remove non‑residents from a site during an investigation, and can close non‑residential premises linked to a drug charge until the case ends (with limited exceptions). Courts can require a cash bond to reopen.
  • You may be billed for enforcement costs if you knowingly allowed the activity. If you took reasonable steps to prevent it, that can be a defence against penalties and costs.

• Tenants and small business occupants

  • If a location is alleged to be used for drug production or trafficking, police can require non‑residents to leave and can close non‑residential spaces. Residences cannot be closed under this power, but non‑residents may be required to leave during police action.
  • Entering a closed site is banned until the case finishes unless a court allows entry.

• Drivers, auto technicians, and retailers

  • Police can stop a vehicle, search it, and seize electronic car‑theft devices (for example, tools that intercept or copy key signals) if they have reasonable grounds. Devices may be forfeited after 30 days unless you prove lawful possession to a court.
  • Possessing such a device is not itself a ticket or charge under this Act, but the device can still be taken and kept.

• Victims of intimate partner violence and families

  • More people (like certain prescribed helpers or others with court permission) can apply for a restraining order on your behalf, with your consent. Orders can clearly ban direct or indirect contact.

• People acting as bail sureties

  • If you are a surety, or were one and now owe money on a forfeited recognizance, you must provide information as set by regulation. Not doing so is an offence.

• People convicted of sex offences

  • Voyeurism now counts as a sex offence for Ontario’s registry in more cases. Special travel and in‑person reporting rules for those convicted of offences against a child apply even if federal registration rules do not.

• Communities and local police boards

  • OPP detachment boards must take part in picking permanent detachment commanders.
  • The Inspector General can impose temporary measures (like suspending a board member or issuing directions, and, in some cases, appointing an administrator) when there are urgent risks to public trust or policing.

• Prospective judges and the legal community

  • Judge applicants will be classified as “not recommended,” “recommended,” or “highly recommended.” The Attorney General (AG) can only choose from recommended lists, must match language and location needs, and can set extra criteria for the advisory committee.
  • New judges must agree not to request a transfer to a different court location for 5 years unless there are special circumstances.

Expenses#

No publicly available information.

• The bill creates new duties for police, the Inspector General, courts, and the judicial appointments committee.
• Some costs tied to drug‑related enforcement can be billed back to convicted people or to landlords who knowingly allowed illegal use.
• Fines and forfeitures may offset a portion of enforcement costs.

Proponents' View#

• Helps fight auto theft by letting police remove the tools used to steal cars quickly, even before charges.
• Targets drug production and trafficking in commercial and rental spaces, with strong penalties and the ability to recover policing costs from those who enabled it.
• Improves protection for people at risk of intimate partner violence by making it easier for trusted others to help them get restraining orders.
• Strengthens community safety by allowing cross‑border police assistance within Canada and urgent interim action when police boards or services risk public trust.
• Makes the sex offender registry more comprehensive, especially for offences against children.
• Modernizes and speeds up judicial hiring while ensuring courts in high‑need areas keep their judges for at least five years.
• Improves bail administration by requiring sureties to provide key information.

Opponents' View#

• Seizing auto‑theft devices without creating an offence may raise civil liberties concerns and risks capturing lawful tools used by locksmiths or auto technicians.
• Allowing closure of non‑residential premises before a conviction may harm small businesses or workers who are not involved in wrongdoing.
• Heavy fines and cost recovery aimed at landlords could push stricter tenant screening or faster evictions, affecting renters who are innocent.
• Expanded police powers and cross‑jurisdiction assistance need clear rules and oversight to prevent overreach or confusion about accountability.
• Changes to judicial appointments, including AG‑set criteria and a 5‑year no‑transfer commitment, could be seen as reducing judicial independence or making recruitment harder in some regions.
• Broadening the sex offender registry and special reporting rules may duplicate federal requirements and increase burdens without clear evidence of added public safety.