The federal government on Tuesday proposed new legislation to aid the fight against auto theft.

'Our auto thieves have put innocent lives and police officers at risk, and their desire to get away at all costs has sometimes cause grave injuries and fatalities.'—Shelly Glover, Manitoba MP

The bill, if passed into law, would create a separate offence of theft of a motor vehicle and carry a mandatory sentence of six months for a third offence.

It would also establish a new offence for altering or removing a vehicle's registration number.

"Auto theft is so much more than a property crime. Our auto thieves have put innocent lives and police officers at risk, and their desire to get away at all costs has sometimes caused grave injuries and fatalities," said MP Shelly Glover, who made the announcement on behalf of Canadian Minister of Justice Rob Nicholson.

The proposed bill was revealed in Winnipeg, which has long been recognized as the car theft capital of Canada.

The legislation is aimed at tackling property crime in general, and auto theft in particular, said Glover, who represents Winnipeg's St. Boniface riding.

A distinct offence for auto theft would allow courts to recognize an offender's record for multiple auto thefts. That, in turn, could affect how he or she is sentenced in court.

Currently, those details are not available to judges. Auto thefts are written up as simply property crimes.

The legislation also proposes to make it an offence to traffic in property obtained by crime, and make it an offence to be in the possession of such property for the purpose of trafficking.

In addition, the law would empower the Canada Border Services Agency to identify and prevent stolen property from leaving the country, "thus providing a means to address the problem of the exportation of stolen vehicles from Canada by organized crime," says a news release issued by Glover.

The bill must first pass through the House of Commons before it is declared law.