TORONTO – Prime Minister Stephen Harper says legislation will be introduced this fall that would bring in harsher penalties for people who commit sexual offences against children.

The proposed changes would also ensure sentencing takes into account when someone has committed offences against multiple children.

The new measures would see those people serve consecutive sentences for each child they have victimized.

Harper’s Conservative government has brought in a number of mandatory minimum penalties for various crimes over the years and this law would increase both minimum and maximum penalties for child sexual offences.

The government is also looking to ensure the spouse of a person charged with child pornography offences could be obliged to testify in court.