That may be where the frustration occurs with the Westray instance, but I have to point out to the member opposite who is remarking that it would be more precise to use the word businessman or entrepreneur because, in my experience as a police reporter covering industrial accidents, I can tell the member opposite that I saw more death associated with small business than I did with large corporations. The reality is that the large corporations, by and large, have the means to make sure that workplace safety provisions are in place. But the small entrepreneurs often fail in this regard.
I will give an example. Not very long ago we had a fatal accident with a student employee in a bakery who was operating a machine that kneads dough. If I understand this motion correctly, it is that the person who is in charge of that small bakery should be subject to some sort of criminal code provision, rather than the Ontario labour code provisions that are already applicable.
Indeed, Mr. Speaker, you could reduce it even further. You could take this problem of industrial safety to the farm.
I live in a small community in Ontario in the countryside and we have had several accidents within my memory where people have been drawn into a combine or where people have climbed down into a silo and have died as a result of the gases that are heavier than air and form a pool at the bottom of the silo. Should these farmers be subject to criminal code provisions because they allowed an accident to occur on their farm, which may indeed have actually happened to their very family? It might have been a son who died or a farmhand who died.
While I have enormous sympathy for the frustration felt by the people who lost loved ones at Westray, it seems to me that the proper direction of the anger and the reform should be to bring in better provincial laws regarding workplace safety. It is perfectly possible to have provincial laws that have severe penalties if employers do not provide adequate safety for the workers.
But, Mr. Speaker, I just want to make the point to all members who are interested in this issue that you cannot make a distinction between corporate Canada and then leave out every other type of employer. Mr. Speaker, if you are going to apply the criminal code or any other law you must apply it universally.
I see a member opposite nodding. I see some sympathy there. Yes, by all means, if we can improve the law federally, perhaps not through the criminal code, so that it enforces cross-Canada standards of workplace safety, whether it is on the farm, whether it is in a small enterprise or in a large corporation, I would say yes, absolutely, and amend the motion to that effect, except there is one reality check here and that is the problem that unfortunately workplace safety is primarily a provincial responsibility. Certainly we who are MPs from Ontario find that it is almost impossible to make any kind of meaningful dialogue with the provincial government on any issue. I certainly do not think the provincial government would accept any kind of standards brought in by the national government on workplace safety, but I can assure you, Mr. Speaker, if it were possible I would dearly love to do it.