Evidence of meeting #4 for Industry, Science and Technology in the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was standard.
A recording is available from Parliament.
3:50 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Dan Ruimy
Thank you very much, Mr. Bernier.
Mr. Masse will have the next question.
3:50 p.m.
NDP
Brian Masse NDP Windsor West, ON
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you to our guests for being here today. I have your backgrounder here. I'm sorry I was a little late. I had to speak in the House of Commons. I appreciate your coming here today on short notice as well to get us going.
I noticed that your document talks about your representing Canada in international and regional forums, such as the International Organization for Standardization, the ISO, and the International Electrotechnical Commission, the IEC.
I am just wondering if reports are gathered after those travels—I haven't seen them—that could be sent to the offices of members of Parliament with respect to those interactions, so that we see what is going on out there in the world.
3:50 p.m.
Vice-President, Strategy, Standards Council of Canada
We manage approximately 450 mirror committees; those are the Canadians participating in international standardization activities. Committees will work on draft standards, and that work will be focused on the draft document until a draft standard is ready for public consultation.
We can do two things for parliamentarians. We can absolutely alert parliamentarians when new work items in specific areas of interest are being contemplated; we can alert parliamentarians to new work items that have been approved. Then we can explain to parliamentarians what the parameters are for each of the different standards being developed, and once the public consultation process begins, then obviously every Canadian can come up with comments and share those comments with the Canadian mirror committee.
3:55 p.m.
NDP
Brian Masse NDP Windsor West, ON
Okay. Despite fear of being lynched by my colleagues for receiving more email, I still think it would be very helpful to get at least some notifications, especially if there's interest in our ridings in the public consultations. I think that would be really helpful.
Do you do a year-end summary and is it distributed? Is that something that takes place?
3:55 p.m.
Vice-President, Strategy, Standards Council of Canada
I'm sorry; I didn't hear the second part.
3:55 p.m.
Vice-President, Strategy, Standards Council of Canada
Well, yes, we can. What we can do is—
3:55 p.m.
NDP
Brian Masse NDP Windsor West, ON
Okay, but you don't right now? I just want to make sure what I'm getting and not getting. You don't right now, right?
And I'm not being negative. That's just....
3:55 p.m.
Vice-President, Strategy, Standards Council of Canada
What we could do is send you our annual report, which provides the list of the various technical committees in which Canada participates. We can also send you the annual work program or biannual programs from the various international organizations that develop standards. That would be a starting point.
On our website you have the ongoing list, the active list of all of the mirror committees, and the chairs, secretaries, and members as well. There's a lot of information that you can access on our website.
3:55 p.m.
NDP
Brian Masse NDP Windsor West, ON
Okay. It's just a matter of hunting stuff down. This committee is huge. I know that I would appreciate the biannual or the annual.... Whatever is appropriate to start with is good with me. We don't want to create extra work. You could be doing all kinds of wonderful work out there that we're not even aware of, especially under science, technology, innovation, and so forth.
I would just encourage that, for me. People could opt out of it, if they don't want it. You could invite them to do it. If they don't want to receive it, then it wouldn't be a waste of resources and time for you. But I would find it interesting.
In the section of your speaking notes entitled “Challenges & Opportunities”, you have a point which says:
Canada's ability to develop and maintain standards has been impacted by reduced funding, a decrease in experts and more complex standards. Canada is relying more and more on regional (U.S.) or international standards.
How much have you been reduced in budget for the last number of years? When did it take a dip, and how much are you behind in terms of where you think you need to be?
3:55 p.m.
Vice-President, Strategy, Standards Council of Canada
SCC itself received an increase in parliamentary appropriation, I believe three years ago, in order to increase our participation internationally and also to update some critical standards that were badly out of date. But here, what is meant by this is really the reduced funding available in Canada to help our Canadian standards development organizations maintain and develop new standards. That's really what we're talking about here.
3:55 p.m.
Vice-President, Strategy, Standards Council of Canada
In terms of range, if you want to develop a new standard, let's say for a new technology that you'd like to deploy in the country, it is probably around $200,000 to $300,000, if you were to hire a standards development organization to develop the standard on your behalf.
3:55 p.m.
NDP
Brian Masse NDP Windsor West, ON
That would be comprehensive, I guess.
Okay, it would be comprehensive. I just want to make sure that's on the record, because nodding is not.
The other question I had regarding that section is with the statement, “Canada needs to align standards and regulatory requirements within North America to make gains and advance the Canadian economy.” Would you guys—women as well in your organization—deal with such things as, say for example, auto recall, with the United States? Would that be part of what you're...?
No, it wouldn't?
3:55 p.m.
Vice-President, Strategy, Standards Council of Canada
No, that's a regulatory obligation that Transport Canada and their counterparts in the U.S. manage.
3:55 p.m.
NDP
Brian Masse NDP Windsor West, ON
What kinds of things are you looking at here with regard to North American alignment?
3:55 p.m.
Vice-President, Strategy, Standards Council of Canada
For example, in Canada, we maintain approximately 2,400 different standards—electrical, plumbing, gas, pressure vessels, those kinds of things—and in the majority of cases, these standards are not identical, obviously, and not even harmonized with equivalent standards in the U.S. We're trying to make sure that the next editions of plumbing or electrical standards are getting closer and closer to what's happening in the U.S. so the certification requirements in Canada and the U.S. will be more aligned. This would result in savings for the manufacturers but also for Canadian consumers, because they pay for this at the end of the day.
4 p.m.
NDP
Brian Masse NDP Windsor West, ON
I hear this from the mould-making industry.
You must have a real challenge with us on the metric system and them on the Imperial system with regard to all this, or is that a challenge you've grown through?
4 p.m.
Vice-President, Strategy, Standards Council of Canada
No, that's an annex in a document. That's not really an issue.
4 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Dan Ruimy
Thank you very much.
May I recommend that you send that report Mr. Masse was asking for to the clerk. We can pass it around to everybody.
4 p.m.
Vice-President, Strategy, Standards Council of Canada
We'll send you a copy of our annual report, just to be clear, and if there are additional requests for information, then we can point you to the annual work program. All these international organizations can give you a pretty good sense of the scope.
4 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Dan Ruimy
Thank you very much.
The final question in this round goes to Mr. Arya.
You have seven minutes.