Health committee  I will turn to my colleague to help me out, but first and foremost, the bill is intended to capture those types of flavours. They are in those products, so if those companies want to continue to do business in this country they will have to reformulate them. The bill is designed

Health committee  Including them.

Health committee  Thank you, Madam Chair. I'll try to catch it and not drop it. The department, in moving forward with this legislation, consulted with other federal departments involved in the tobacco control strategy. So they are aware of this bill, what it intends to do, and what impact it mig

Health committee  We mean the entire Canadian marketplace.

Health committee  Thank you, Madam Chair. I have a number of comments. The issues around contraband obviously are separate from the particular amendment here and are dealt with separately by the federal government. With respect to consultations with industry, we have been consulting with indust

Health committee  Thank you, Madam Chair, for the member's questions. There are a number of manufacturers with different ingredients. But speaking in generalities, I will turn to my colleague Denis to help me out a little bit on this one. We're getting past my level of expertise. But there are

Health committee  So I guess the question is, are vanilla and licorice flavours that appeal to children? The research we have shows that they are. Are they distinct flavours? Within that, is it branded as a vanilla flavour or a licorice flavour? No, they're American blended, and that has to do wit

Health committee  It's a mixture. Therefore, they add a number of sweeteners to it. And that is a concern people have been expressing. However, it is those very sweeteners that this bill is intending to address and deal with. But we are aware of a number of American-branded cigarettes that have b

Health committee  I will comment on the amendment generally.

Health committee  I will also answer the honorable member. First of all, with respect to the amendment that's proposed, it is the department's view that this responds to a number of concerns the committee heard with respect to testimony from industry. For example, white is a colour, so what colou

Health committee  It is Virginia tobacco, which is a slightly different from American tobacco. The taste is different. Also, in the US, they add things to improve the taste. Some American manufacturers have changed their formulations in order to meet the requirements of the legislation. Generally,

Health committee  Thank you, Madam Chair, for the opportunity to comment on this amendment. The amendment as proposed is, in many respects, duplicative. It neither adds to nor detracts from powers already in the bill. From a drafting point of view, it raises some concern for us in that in another

Health committee  Thank you, Madam Chair, for the opportunity to respond. The department is pleased to report a number of things. First, should this bill be passed, it will give the department the powers necessary to collect the type of information that the member is talking about. It will requir

Health committee  Madam Chair, we believe that within a year we would be able to leaf through a full-use cycle in terms of usage and have sufficient data from the importers and manufacturers with respect to ingredients to be able to report back. But certainly, if it is possible and if we have data

Health committee  Thank you, Madam Chair. Just for the record, I wish to make clear that the amendment as proposed does not cause concern for the department in terms of our ability to implement it should it pass. In fact, through informal discussions with a number of jurisdictions, there has been