Madam Speaker, first of all, the auto industry has never made its case on the health issues. The automobile industry made its case on catalysts and sensors and the onboard detection systems in vehicles. That was its case.
With respect to the case on health, I produced several quotations during second reading and I have them here. I did not obtain them from the automobile industry.
The fact is that several very learned and respected scientists have said beware, there is a potential problem with manganese. To say that it does not exist is to negate some very important opinions that have been expressed.
Following the Earth Summit in Rio, which my friends on the environment committee will know, sanction is now one of the basic principles of any environmental law as a precautionary principle. Do not wait until everything has been proven conclusively before we act.
When Rachel Carson wrote a book about DDT she was thought to be crazy. And look at what DDT has done while we waited for conclusive proof.
At one time we were using PCBs and we thought they were good for the environment and for equipment in transformers. We found out too late how deleterious it is to the environment. We used lead as well, and thought it was great until too late we found out what happened.
As I said to the member, if there is a choice to be made, do we choose a heavy metal that can produce problems or do we use a clean additive? The choice is very clear to me. On the basis of the precautionary principle and on the basis of all I have read, I am voting very convincingly for Bill C-94.