Tony Clement

[Health, April 17th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, as the hon. member mentioned, we have signed 13 agreements with each of the provinces and territories respecting Canada's first patient wait time guarantees.

This new Wait Time Alliance report indicates that there has been clear progress in the five priority areas, with marked progress being made in cancer care and cardiac care at a time when the demand for health care only grows.

Progress is being made, more work must be done, but after 13 long years of Liberals doing nothing on the health care file, we are acting.

[Drugs and Pharmaceuticals, April 10th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, the government, as I said, has never been in favour of direct to consumer advertising. It is a myth that is being perpetuated today by the NDP. This is its typical modus operandi. It is its system to create an unfounded allegation to scare Canadians and to scare patients.

If it spent as much time voting for our budgets that help the health and welfare of Canadians, this country would be better, but thank goodness that we are in power rather than the NDP because we are protecting the health and safety of Canadians.

[Drugs and Pharmaceuticals, April 10th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, I honestly do not know what the hon. member is referring to. There is no policy in this government to start allowing drug companies to advertise directly to consumers. That has never been the policy of the government. I understand the matter is before the courts, so I will end my comments at this point.

[Questions on the Order Paper, April 9th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, in response to (a), Canada is a party to the World Health Organization’s Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, FCTC, which came into force on February 27, 2005. Article 11, packaging and labelling of tobacco products, of the FCTC requires each party to the convention, within three years after coming into force, for that party to adopt and implement, in accordance with its national law, effective measures to ensure that each tobacco package carry health warnings describing the harmful effects of tobacco use. Article 11 further states that the health warnings ”should be 50% or more of the principal display areas but shall be no less than 30%”. For Canada, the three year implementation period ended on February 27, 2008.

In 2000, Canada enacted its tobacco products information regulations which meet or exceed the requirements of Article 11 of the FCTC for the most part, as more than 95% of the Canadian market is currently in full compliance with the convention obligations. However, the tobacco products not presently covered by the tobacco products information regulations include individually wrapped cigars and niche market products, such as water pipe tobacco. In addition, the health warnings for cigars in a box and pipe tobacco contained in a pouch being of fixed dimensions may not meet the Convention’s requirement to occupy no less than 30% of the principal display areas in certain circumstances.

As a result, the Government of Canada, in anticipation of the need to revise and expand its tobacco products information regulations, began holding public consultations in 2004 with a view to strengthening the regulatory framework. A large amount of labelling concepts, contents and layout, has been tested. As part of the ongoing regulatory change process, in 2007 08, stakeholder meetings have been taking place. Finally, work on the cost benefit analysis is expected to start in the summer of 2008. The government is ensuring that the regulatory process is followed to produce comprehensive regulations that will comply with Article 11 of FCTC and be of benefit to Canadians.

In response to (b), it is expected that new labelling requirements addressing the remaining tobacco products and bringing Canada into full compliance with Article 11 of the FCTC will be in place in October 2010.

[Drugs and Pharmaceuticals, April 9th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, the announcement yesterday and the legislation that is before the House has the same stringent standards for licensing of drug products as was there before and, in fact, we have expanded it by allowing the minister the opportunity to attach conditions post-market to those products as well.

This is what the life cycle approach is all about. It will be additional health and safety for Canadians. That is why we encourage members to back this legislation.

[Canada Consumer Product Safety Act, April 8th, 2008]

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-52, An Act respecting the safety of consumer products.

(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)

[Food and Drugs Act, April 8th, 2008]

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-51, An Act to amend the Food and Drugs Act and to make consequential amendments to other Acts.

(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)

[Product Safety, April 2nd, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for his analysis of the situation. I think he is absolutely correct. After being only interested in power and about their own self-justification, the Liberal Party members did nothing in the area of product safety and consumer safety for 13 long years.

Of course when we realized the situation, we directed our officials to do a thorough review. In the throne speech the Prime Minister moved forward with an ambitious plan to overhaul the product system in Canada. We are moving forward. The Prime Minister announced last December a new food and consumer safety action plan. We are delivering where the Liberals dithered.

[HIV-AIDS, March 13th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, as the hon. member knows, some spending was cut by Liberal budgets, but we can all work together to improve this situation.

I have given my commitment to these groups that we will try to make these Liberal cuts as least intrusive as possible so that the programs themselves could be saved.

[Health, March 12th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, let me first thank the hon. member for an excellent question. I would say to the House that even in good economic times there are those at risk of being left behind, but Canadians are guided by the values of compassion, kindness and generosity. That is why we created the Mental Health Commission in the first place.

That is why the Minister of Finance, demonstrating those important values himself, announced funding in budget 2008 for the commission to establish five pilot projects across the country to help show the way on how we can help those who are homeless and suffering from mental illness.

Mr. Speaker--