Bill C-495 (Historical)

National Office for Fire and Emergency Response Statistics Act

An Act to amend the Statistics Act (National Office for Fire and Emergency Response Statistics)

This bill was last introduced in the 40th Parliament, 3rd Session, which ended in March 2011.

Sponsor

Don Davies  NDP

Introduced as a private member’s bill. (These don’t often become law.)

Status

Outside the Order of Precedence (a private member's bill that hasn't yet won the draw that determines which private member's bills can be debated), as of March 11, 2010
(This bill did not become law.)

Summary

This is from the published bill. The Library of Parliament often publishes better independent summaries.

This enactment establishes the National Office for Fire and Emergency Response Statistics within Statistics Canada.

Elsewhere

All sorts of information on this bill is available at LEGISinfo, an excellent resource from the Library of Parliament. You can also read the full text of the bill.

National Office for Fire and Emergency Response Statistics ActRoutine Proceedings

March 11th, 2010 / 10:05 a.m.
See context

NDP

Don Davies NDP Vancouver Kingsway, BC

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-495, An Act to amend the Statistics Act (National Office for Fire and Emergency Response Statistics).

Mr. Speaker, I rise this morning to introduce a bill that would create a national office for fire and emergency response statistics.

This office would build a database to compile fire and emergency response statistics from across the country. These statistics would be a valuable and much needed source of information that could help our firefighters and policymakers analyze data to keep our communities safer.

Last year I met with Gord Ditchburn, president of the Vancouver Fire Fighters' Union, and Chris Coleman from that union's government and public affairs committee. They told me that Canada does not track fire statistics and they were missing this important tool to help them do their jobs, keeping Canadians and firefighters safe.

Just yesterday my colleague from Ottawa Centre and I met with Ottawa firefighters John Sobey and Rob Collins. They, too, told us about their need for a comprehensive source of information on fire damage, fire deaths and emergency response times in Canada.

I am proud to rise in this House today to propose legislation that would fulfill this sound and needed request.

There are many other things that the government could and should be doing to support firefighters. We should implement a public safety officer compensation benefit for the families of fallen police and firefighters. We should include firefighter safety considerations in the national building code. We should expand our fire database to eventually include comprehensive information on all aspects of firefighting that could be shared from Nova Scotia to British Columbia.

Finally, this bill is one important component of what firefighters have been calling for. I urge all members of this House to join with me in supporting our firefighters. Support this bill and give firefighters access to the information they need to keep us all safe.

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