Christian Paradis

[Combatting Counterfeit Products Act, June 12th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, absolutely, and I thank my colleague for his good question, because indeed this is what we are talking about here. We are talking about people tricking Canadians, and organized crime is behind it, big time.

It is harmful for Canadians. It jeopardizes health and safety. It also jeopardizes the economy when honest people try to innovate, create new products, find export markets and create wealth, and then have to fight against cheaters like that. It is simply not acceptable.

I am a lawyer by training, and I know exactly what my colleague is talking about. When customers come to the office and they are trying to compete against cheaters, of course we have to ensure that the law can address these issues.

That is what this bill would do. It would give border officers the authority to detain suspected commercial shipments and contact the rights holders. It would allow Canadian businesses to fill a request for assistance with the Canada Border Service Agency, in turn enabling border officers to share information with rights holders regarding suspicious shipments; provide new criminal offences for the commercial possession, manufacture or trafficking of counterfeit trademark goods; provide legitimate owners with new tools to protect their rights and take civil action against infringers; create new offences for trademark counterfeiting; and provide better tools to investigate commercial counterfeiting.

This is what Canadians expect. These are real tools. We will be able to address this problem better and hopefully combat organized crime more efficiently.

[Combatting Counterfeit Products Act, June 12th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, first of all, I must remind my colleague that our government's bill is a made-in-Canada solution that draws from international best practices. What he raises from Europe is just not relevant here. We addressed the issue here; he knows the concerns that were raised in Europe are not part of this bill.

As I said, all of the parties supported the bill at committee in 2007. I do not know why the member tries to slow things down when we know that this measure is desperately needed.

I am very happy that the member for Simcoe—Grey stood in the House, given her knowledge and her skills, and said that we have to take care of the health and safety of Canadians. It is shameful that the member tries to disqualify the member. She had a good speech, and the words that he used are just shameful.

We have to make sure that we take care of the health and safety of Canadians, and we will not make excuses for that.

[Combatting Counterfeit Products Act, June 12th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, the answer is quite simple. I must remind the House that in 2007 the draft of the bill received all-party support at committee. These are the facts of the matter. I have to remind the member that since our government came to office, we took steps to create an effective and balanced enforcement regime for intellectual properties.

Let us remember the corporate law situation. This has been stalled for years, especially under the previous government. We had to update this law. We finally did that, and this is the logical consequence. We want to go further to make sure that down the road Canadians will know we are talking about real things. We do not play any games here.

In 2007, all of the parties agreed, so I do not know why my colleague is complaining. He should be happy. We are now putting forward a law that will protect Canadians' health and safety, combat organized crime and prohibit people from putting fake labels on products. These people jeopardize our economy at the same time that innovators are making efforts to make sure they can drive the economy and increase their exports to create wealth here in this country.

[Combatting Counterfeit Products Act, June 12th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from Ottawa—Orléans for his very good question.

As far as the member for Winnipeg North is concerned, he is grandstanding, saying that basic principles are being undermined, when this bill is very important and has been thoroughly debated.

Hon. members know what Canadians think about this. I hope no one will have the audacity to say that it is no big deal if the amount of counterfeit goods has jumped from $7 million worth in 2005 to $38 million worth in 2012. We must do something about this. There is pressure to do so and we must keep that in mind.

As far as my colleague's second question is concerned, this is far from being a surprise. Two House committees have studied this in the past. Members of the House have spoken to this issue and they are well aware of the scope of the bill.

We should be pleased today. This is about Canadians' health and safety. It is about fighting organized crime and clamping down on cheaters who put fake labels on products. Canadian innovators are working hard, investing all their energy, resources, capital and time in order to contribute to the economy, and they have to deal with cheaters.

The primary duty of a responsible government is to put an end to all this because this situation is absurd. It is time to say enough is enough. Many groups in Canada support this measure regarding the economy.

[Combatting Counterfeit Products Act, June 12th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, on the contrary, we have to act on this issue. There are stakeholders supporting this. They have put a lot of pressure on the House of Commons to get this through. It is ironic. On one hand, the opposition says we are going too fast. On the other hand, it says that we are dragging our feet.

I think we all agree on the principle, and the numbers are there. The value of these counterfeit goods was $7.6 million in 2005 compared to $38 million in 2012. We cannot afford to just close our eyes and say that everything is good.

There were two House of Commons committees that worked on this matter. It is time for us to move on. We are ready to go with sound and solid legislation, taking care of the health and safety of Canadians, combatting organized crime and prohibiting fake labels.

This is also good for the economy. We have innovators who struggle to invent new products, but when there are people who trick Canadians like that, it just jeopardizes all of their work, their time, their energy and the resources and the capital they put into their projects.

We have to demonstrate leadership and say enough is enough, that this kind of practice is no longer tolerated in our country. No one will argue against that. This is just good common sense.

[Combatting Counterfeit Products Act, June 12th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, on the contrary, the bill that we are talking about is very crucial. Under the leadership of the Prime Minister , we want to tackle this issue. We are addressing concerns about the health and safety of Canadians. We are talking about combatting organized crime. We are putting in place a prohibition of counterfeit labels.

Let me just quote some supportive groups.

The Food and Consumer Products of Canada said, “Counterfeit products pose a danger to Canadians. Congrats to the government on taking this positive step”.

The Canadian Chamber of Commerce said, “We welcome new legislation aimed at tackling counterfeit and pirated products”.

This is what the stakeholders think. This is what Canadians think. They expect their government to take care of their health and safety.

[Combatting Counterfeit Products Act, June 12th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to rise in the House to once again extol the virtues of Bill C-56.

As we know, in recent years, evidence has suggested an upward trend in global trade in goods. Two House of Commons committees have published detailed reports confirming the growing threat posed by these goods, not only to the Canadian economy but also to health and safety.

Furthermore, counterfeiting has become a priority for Canada's key trading partners and other G8 countries, many of which have taken steps to strengthen their respective intellectual property rights enforcement regimes. That demonstrates how important this bill is.

There are some very concerning numbers in terms of this problem. Just let me quote the fact that the RCMP has identified the value of counterfeit products has increased about five times from what it was back in 2005. Back in 2005, it was about $7.6 million and in 2012 it was about $30 million. We cannot close our eyes to this problem. This is a serious threat.

[Aerospace Industry, June 10th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, on the contrary, Canada has a strong record of support for Canada's space sector. It is an honour for me to be standing up in this House to thank Commander Hadfield for his exemplary service, of which all Canadians can be proud.

Beyond that, there were key files on which we took leadership. I can speak about the participation of the country on the International Space Station and the RADARSAT Constellation mission too. I hope we will have the support of the opposition. These are real tangible benefits, and this is what would allow us to remain a leader in the space sector.

[Aerospace Industry, June 10th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, our government has a strong record regarding support for the Canadian space sector. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Commander Chris Hadfield for his exemplary service, which is a source of Canadian pride.

Commander Hadfield made an impressive contribution to the space mission, and he renewed appreciation for Canada's expertise. His efforts put Canadian ingenuity back in the spotlight and piqued the world's interest.

This is Canada's 50th year in space, and our government remains committed to keeping Canada at the forefront of the space industry.

[Privacy, June 7th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, we thank the Privacy Commissioner for her report, and we indeed have taken measures to have tougher measures. That is why we introduced Bill C-12, which would improve privacy safeguards.

It is unfortunate that the opposition decided to play political games and needlessly delayed the bill.

We seek the support from the opposition. Everything covered in this bill is in response to what was recommended by the committee. I urge the opposition to support Bill C-12 immediately.