Thank you.
This is one of challenges with this process that we've talked about a great deal. The amendments being sought here around trademark and intellectual property, and we'll be supportive of the amendments that have been moved by my friend.... I suspect that these votes are going to lose, and the bill is going to pass as it is.
But I offer this sincerely to my friends across the way. Have some pause here, because initially the minister tried to describe this as just a bunch of lawyers wanting more trademark work. But you do get the warnings from the Canadian Bar Association and from the American Bar Association as well, plus the Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters, the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, and dozens of other chambers of commerce across the country writing to the government and, in fact, pleading with them not to do this because of one particular stipulation around the need-to-use clause.
Some, like myself, have had to learn about the way trademark actually works in Canada. In terms of registering a trademark, it makes intuitive sense to actually use the trademark. You're intending to trademark a name, and that name is associated with a product, product line, or something you are doing.
This change goes far beyond any international requirements and far beyond what we're expected to do in any of the conventions that Canada is seeking to come in line with. It actually eliminates that stipulation, so that you then invite trademark trolls into Canada. Some will remember the inception of the Internet, when people—trademark trolls—would sit in their basements and register hundreds and thousands of Internet domain names in order to try to make money. Now, this is a tax on the system, as any conservative economist will tell you, because they're not actually adding any value. It's simply a cost of business. They have to pay off the person who has that domain name in order to secure the name they want for, you know, Montreal Canadiens.com, or whatever it happens to be. It's an absolute concrete tax on the system, and that's why these different groups have come forward.
I get why the Conservatives want to ignore the Canadian Bar Association. No love lost there. I understand. But certainly the Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters, and certainly the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, who are not known for being hyperbolic about these things, have said clearly in all their comments that have already been well stipulated.... I'll read just one, from the director of intellectual property and innovation policy at the chamber. Here's the quote, and I'll end soon here, Mr. Chair:
This amendment would mean that anybody could register a trademark for any goods of services simply by paying a government fee. This would open the door for trademark trolls to register currently existing brand names and trademarks and effectively extort value for them from current, unregistered owners.
That's a problem. That hurts productivity, efficiency, and all those things that government seeks to help in the Canadian economy, as fragile as it is.
So, for goodness' sake, this has been rammed into an omnibus bill. I understand the imperative of my colleagues across the way, who are given vote sheets and are going to vote a certain way, but these amendments seeking to remove this one stipulation and satisfy the exporters, the Canadian Bar Association, and the Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters should give people some pause on the Conservative side of the table.