Thank you, Madam Chair.
I thank the minister and her officials for being with us today.
Everyone here agrees that China is not a trading partner that respects international trade rules. We are aware of all kinds of dumping practices, among other things, but one of the major issues is the use of goods produced by forced labour. For instance, we know about the issue of imports from Xinjiang. According to the government's figures, Canadian authorities have made no seizures—zero—while in the United States, $700 million worth of goods has been seized thanks to an act, the Uyghur Forced Labour Prevention Act.
However, we know that there was supposed to be a Canadian statute on this. In the March 2023 budget, it was written in black and white that a bill to ban forced labour would be introduced by the government before the end of the year. That didn't happen. In March 2024, the government again committed to introducing forced labour legislation by the end of the year. Today is October 21. There's not much time left before the end of the year.
After breaking its word in 2023, will the government keep its word in 2024?