Evidence of meeting #55 for Health in the 39th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was cdr.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Rob Merrifield
All right, so we would be adding CFIA.
So the amendment, Mr. Brown....
Are you all right with just adding that?
Conservative
Patrick Brown Conservative Barrie, ON
That's fine. I think most of this we've been able to accommodate.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Rob Merrifield
Fair enough.
So we have, then, what I would see as an amendment just on the regulatory changes.
Go ahead, Mr. Fletcher.
Conservative
Conservative
Conservative
Steven Fletcher Conservative Charleswood—St. James—Assiniboia, MB
Oh, we're speaking to the amendment. I was going to speak in favour of the motion as amended.
I think the intent of the amendment is just to focus on what I think has been coming out in the media, which is what your intent is. Now, there's nothing that prevents us from revisiting this again afterwards if you don't get satisfaction. I think the amendment would be helpful just to help us pinpoint which officials you would like to deal with.
We can bring the officials in to deal within that scope, but if you want to deal with everything, I'm sure the officials would be able to talk to that as well. I'm just concerned that we'd have to bring in too many officials. So that's fine.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Rob Merrifield
Yes, you can ask me, and then I'll have him answer. How's that?
Liberal
Bonnie Brown Liberal Oakville, ON
Okay, Mr. Chair.
The parliamentary secretary has said something interesting. If the parliamentary secretary knows that in each of these three agencies there is a person assigned to harmonization with the Americans, and he's willing to bring those three people in, that's fine. There certainly was a person with the Quarantine Act. There was the one fellow.
Conservative
Conservative
Steven Fletcher Conservative Charleswood—St. James—Assiniboia, MB
I think I can say that we'd bring in the people who would be able to address the concerns I think they're raising through the media reports. There are a gazillion officials working on regulations.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Rob Merrifield
That's the offer. Everybody has heard it here. I'm sure they're going to address the concerns.
Okay, are we good to go?
Pat.
Conservative
Patricia Davidson Conservative Sarnia—Lambton, ON
Yes, I just need a point of clarification. I'm really not sure what the amendment is now. I'm a little confused about what's left in after Mr. Brown's amendment and what was accepted.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Rob Merrifield
I see that two of them were friendly, and the last one was that the regulatory changes be moved to.... I don't know. What was it?
Conservative
Patrick Brown Conservative Barrie, ON
Mr. Chairman, I think the gist of my concern was met. So we can take off the floor the final amendment.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Rob Merrifield
Okay, so we'd just leave it the way it is. Fair enough. So actually, then, we don't have an amendment. It was just seen as a friendly suggestion. So the amendment is off.
We have the motion. We've just debated it.
We've added the date, “on May 30”, and we've added the food agency, “Canadian Food Inspection Agency”.
Conservative
Steven Fletcher Conservative Charleswood—St. James—Assiniboia, MB
Could I say something, Mr. Chair?
We'll make sure that the officials who come in are experts, or can at least address the concerns based on what has come out in the media, just because there could be a lot of additional people, otherwise.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Rob Merrifield
Okay, fair enough.
(Motion agreed to [See Minutes of Proceedings])
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Rob Merrifield
Boy, we get a lot of things done when we get along. Isn't it amazing?
We'd like to move in camera now. We're going to take a 30-second pause, and then we will move in camera.
[Proceedings continue in camera]