Finance Committee on April 18th, 2024

[Dr. Ian Lee]

Yes.

I have been challenged on this. Some have said we'll lose our Canadian identity. I have flown on Lufthansa and I've never learned how to speak German.

[Voices]

Oh, oh!

[Dr. Ian Lee]

I have flown on Aeroflot and I've never learned to speak Russian. I have not been assimilated by flying on other airlines just because they have a foreign flag. We will not lose our Canadian identity.

I'm in Hilton Head. I flew on United Airlines to get here, and I'm every bit as Canadian as the day I left.

[Yvan Baker, Liberal, Etobicoke Centre, ON]

Is that my time, Mr. Chair? I was just getting started.

[Voices]

Oh, oh!

[Yvan Baker, Liberal, Etobicoke Centre, ON]

Thanks very much.

[The Chair, Liberal, Peter Fonseca]

Thank you, MP Baker.

We were wondering where you were, Mr. Lee. It's Hilton Head.

We're at MP Ste-Marie, please.

[Gabriel Ste-Marie, Bloc, Joliette, QC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

I would add that, having flown Air Canada and other Canadian airlines, I didn't get more service in French.

[Voices]

Oh, oh!

[Gabriel Ste-Marie, Bloc, Joliette, QC]

Mr. Lee, you often refer to Schumpeter's thinking. You even mentioned the theory of creative destruction. Would you draw a parallel between this tool developed by Schumpeter and the current wave or cluster of innovations in artificial intelligence? Do you think this is a good example that will lead to the process Schumpeter explained?

[Dr. Ian Lee]

Schumpeter talked about this long before we suddenly discovered in the current contemporary era that there's a tendency to “oligopolize” in new industries, so we get all concerned about that. All I can remind everybody of is what Schumpeter said: There is no such thing as a permanent monopoly. All monopolies break down if you allow entry and you reduce barriers to entry. Some smart entrepreneur out there will figure out a way to go around the oligopolist or the monopolist because they're making so much money.

That's why “creative destruction” comes from these innovative attempts to smash the existing market power of existing large players. I'm not worried about AI dominating technology. I'm not worried about Meta. Competitors will emerge. Apple is already losing market share on their phones. Competition will address this if it's allowed to.

[Gabriel Ste-Marie, Bloc, Joliette, QC]

If I'm not mistaken, Schumpeter was more pessimistic toward the end of his life. He was concerned about a trend toward bureaucratization and monopolization. He said, regretfully, that if that trend were to continue, it would lead to socialism.

Do you agree or disagree with that vision? Am I misrepresenting the last few years of Schumpeter's work?

[Dr. Ian Lee]

I'll be very quick.

I think you're referring to his final book, Capitalism, Socialism and Democracy, but that was a cultural interpretation. He said that capitalism is the most efficient form of all. It will be destroyed because of what he called “the sociology of the intellectual”—people like me. Well, it's not me literally, but it's that intellectuals don't like markets. We don't like business. We don't like competition.

All you have to do is listen to any professor on CBC, CTV or Global. About 98% of them will verify that. We have this hostility, this deep philosophical opposition. For those who say I'm wrong, please read “The Sociology of the Intellectual”. It's in chapter XIII in Capitalism, Socialism and Democracy. It's the most brilliant exposition ever of how and why intellectuals think the way they do.

[Gabriel Ste-Marie, Bloc, Joliette, QC]

So the enemy of the innovative business person is a unionized intellectual professor like you. Understood.

Thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Peter Fonseca]

Thank you, Mr. Ste‑Marie.

MP Davies, you will get the final three minutes.

[Don Davies, NDP, Vancouver Kingsway, BC]

Thank you.

Dr. Da Silva, I think we all want to make sure that people living with disabilities in this country who have been marginalized—and we have heard this very clearly from you and others—don't have a tough time accessing all health care and, in this case, dental care. If you could give this committee and this government any advice, tell me what you think we should do to address that in the most effective way.

[Dr. Keith Da Silva]

I think you'll see a lot of this come out with the oral health access fund proposals, but one of the challenges I faced as a pediatric dentist.... My speciality area was children, but I treated all adults with special needs, because once they turned 18 or 19, I had nowhere to send them. Some of the work they needed was outside of my scope and involved denture care, implants and things like that.

There needs to be a pipeline for training programs and mentorship for young professionals to realize that they can treat these patients first. They can be a part of the team, whether it's in screening, basic care or prevention.

I think we also need to improve access to hospital care for those who really need it. Sedation is becoming a little too popular for a lot of patients. Some of the patients with more complex medical needs are on the same waiting lists. It's really about looking into creating more specialized hospital departments to care for those who need these services.

[Don Davies, NDP, Vancouver Kingsway, BC]

We've seen, in the primary health care field with physicians, the emergence of nurse practitioners. I'm aware of the dental therapist position. Do you see an expanded role for dental therapists through the development of a profession that can bridge the gaps between dental assistants, hygienists and dentists? That might be able to target care.

[Dr. Keith Da Silva]

I absolutely hope so. Right now, I think it's only in Saskatchewan and maybe a few other provinces that dental therapists can practice on federal land. We have a new training program in Saskatchewan, so that workforce will be reinvigorated, but we need pathways to licensure for them across Canada.

Again, if there are those who can provide a lot of treatment, even if not the full scope of dentistry but enough that they can see healthy children with simpler needs, then those of us who specialize can focus more on those who really need our specialty services.

[Don Davies, NDP, Vancouver Kingsway, BC]

I think it's fair to say the Liberals and the NDP support this plan, but the Conservatives clearly don't. If this plan were cancelled next year, what impact do you think that would have on public health in this country?

[Dr. Keith Da Silva]

This will address affordability for a lot of Canadians. There are still going to be challenges with access, but without this commitment or plan, there will be a lot of adults and seniors in particular who won't have the means to pay for care.

[The Chair, Liberal, Peter Fonseca]

Thank you, MP Davies.

Thank you, Dr. Da Silva and Professor Lee. We really appreciate your remarks, your testimony and the many answers you gave to questions on Bill C-59 for our work.

We wish you a nice evening. We'll see you again at committee.

Thanks, everybody. We are adjourned.