Thank you, Mr. Chair.
The objective of this is to enhance and confirm the independence of the chief public health officer. The amendment would be to say on page 391 after line 9:
5.4 (1) No person shall interfere with the President in the performance of his or her powers, duties or functions under this Act, including in particular the determination of evidence-based public health priorities for the Agency, the provision of health advice to the public and unfettered access to the public and media.
We define “interference” in proposed subsection 5.4(2) as including “political interference or retribution”.
The objective is to clarify the independence of the agency and the president who speaks on its behalf.