Mr. Speaker, today is World AIDS Day. As part of the national strategy, the national health research and development program budgets some $5.5 million to researchers working outside Health Canada. The Medical Research Council contributes another $2 million to this research.
Normally these programs issue calls for research applications twice each year. Because the federal government is not prepared to commit to funding AIDS research beyond March 1998, the two programs have decided to stop accepting applications. As a result, long term research will suffer and some of the best and brightest researchers may leave the field.
If the Minister of Health and the government are prepared to accept responsibility, it is essential that the Minister of Health and the Liberal government put their money where their mouth is. It takes money to do research. I call on the government to immediately introduce a funding base beyond 1998.