Madam Speaker, I have spoken in this House many times to express my growing concern about the lack of financial resources needed by the commission of inquiry on tainted blood for Mr. Justice Krever to get to the bottom of this outright scandal.
Judge Krever himself told the daily La Presse on November 24, 1993, that the funds granted to the commission and to the Canadian Hemophilia Society were clearly insufficient and that it would be difficult to show what really happened in this tainted blood affair.
The time has come to give more money to this commission and the Canadian Hemophilia Society.
But every time I spoke in this House to ask the minister to act or to grant the funds essential to the proper operation of this commission, she always repeated the same thing, that the request was being considered by Treasury Board and a decision would be made as soon as possible.
How can the minister justify the government's slowness to allocate more funds? What are the minister's intentions on this? These questions are unanswered.
The minister should realize sooner or later that her inaction has and will have a major impact on the work of this commission and its findings. For example, the Canadian Hemophilia Society, the only real defender of the victims of the scandal, is now financially unable to send one of its members to follow all the proceedings of the commission of inquiry.
Who is in a better position than a member of the Canadian Hemophilia Society, which knows every aspect of this affair, to follow it up and properly inform the lawyers on location? However, the inaction of the minister and her government does not allow it and deprives the least fortunate victims of an opportunity to defend themselves in the same way as those who hold economic and political power.
The democratic principle whereby all are equal before the law is being violated, this time with the consent of the minister and her government. Even worse, neither the minister nor the Prime Minister have seen fit to act on the many distress signals from the Canadian Hemophilia Society.
Do the government and the health minister really care about their citizens' welfare? Indeed, do they have something to hide about this shameful saga, one unworthy of a modern society? Why are the minister and her department systematically obstructing the repeated requests of the Canadian Hemophilia Society and thus making any openness in this case impossible?
Need I remind you that lack of openness will leave a bitter memory for all the victims of tainted blood and their families. These victims are entitled to know the circumstances surrounding this scandal and this is the government's and the minister's responsibility. No one has a right to hide the truth and to silence anyone who could clear up this horrible nightmare.
It would be in the minister's interest to speak out clearly and as soon as possible on granting additional funds for the inquiry on tainted blood and for the Canadian Hemophilia Society, as requested by Mr. Justice Krever, so that justice can be done.
My question is simple: what is the minister waiting for to act?