Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Mr. Minister, during today's Question Period, you were asked a question concerning an inspector who produced a report following the detection of listeria bacteria in the Toronto Maple Leaf plant. You then responded that it was not your responsibility but rather that of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and that this question should be directed to the President of the CFIA. The inspector in question had been asked to add written notes to a report. This would normally be done within a few days of the publication of the report, but several months, a request of this nature is much more surprising . Basically, you are washing your hands of the matter, no pun intended.
This is a matter for the committee to deal with. Who has the guts to assume some responsibility for what happened during the listeriosis crisis? Mr. McCain of Maple Leaf was the first to testify before the committee and he accepted full responsibility. We asked him why, and he answered that it was because it was produced in his plant. It was very noble of him, of course. Furthermore, I am convinced that people appreciate a CEO who assumes responsibility instead of pointing fingers at other parties.
Furthermore, he agreed that the responsibility for food safety is after all a shared responsibility. We also heard from other witnesses, including Ms. Swan from the Canadian Food Inspection Agency. It was very difficult to get her to admit that food safety is a shared responsibility, and as far as the listeriosis crisis itself was concerned, the agency was not prepared to accept any responsibility whatsoever.
We took note of Dr. Butler-Jones' testimony and that of other public health officials stating that the Ontario and Toronto health systems were much more to blame, in their opinion, because they had sent samples to the wrong place. The buck was passed to others in this case as well.
You were in charge when this happened. As I said the other day, it was not a joke, the health minister at the time Mr. Clement was attending the Democratic convention in Denver, and he did not return. So then, it was up to you to assume responsibility for this crisis. From the outset, we have never heard you state that the government had learned from what had happened, that the government was accountable for what had happened and that the food inspection system must be reviewed in order to avoid a recurrence of this type of tragic event.
Today, you have the opportunity to admit some responsibility, even though we do not have the means to carry out a true inquiry, with a judge sitting all day. We had to strike this subcommittee to make up for the fact that you have commissioned an inquiry that is meeting behind closed doors and in secret with Ms. Weatherill. Despite all her amazing qualifications and abilities, we do not know what she is doing or what is transpiring at the inquiry.
You will receive the report and you will make it public if you wish, when it suits you. At least here, it is a public hearing before television cameras. You have the opportunity to state tonight to the public that you are responsible. You are the Minister of Agriculture. You should have accepted responsibility for this issue when it regrettably occurred. I really haven't heard you say that you accept some responsibility for the incident. You have the opportunity to do so tonight before this public forum.
I would like to know if you feel that you do have a responsibility to the public, both as the minister and as a member of the government.