Mr. Speaker, it is a pleasure for me to speak today in support of Bill C-61, a bill to introduce an administrative monetary penalty system, or AMPS as it is more commonly know. This bill will provide a broader range of enforcement options to Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada's inspection officials by allowing them to levy monetary policies for non-compliance with the regulations.
As it now stands a criminal prosecution is relied on too heavily. It is often the only option available to inspectors with the department's food production and inspection branch when they are faced with a violation of this country's statutes regarding food and animal health and safety.
By introducing AMPS, inspectors will have at their disposal a range of monetary policies. They will not have to rely on seizure and detention of a product and prosecution through the courts with the attendant delays and costs to the taxpayers that involves.
Technically, administrative monetary penalties are not fines but I will use that word for simplicity. Initially, fines will range from $50 to $6,000 depending on the seriousness of the violation. This legislation will however give the department the ability to impose fines of up to $15,000 for very serious non-compliance to our regulations.
These fines or monetary penalties are not levied without any recourse. Anyone who believes the fine is unjustified will be able to make use of an appeal process. This process will include a departmental review, a review by an independent tribunal and if necessary will proceed to the Federal Court of Canada.
It should be noted that this initiative emphasizes obtaining compliance by offenders and not simply punishment. AMPS will allow the department to negotiate solutions to non-compliance with the offending parties. Fines can be reduced or waived if corrections, for example, processing modifications, are made by the industry.
Immediate corrective action results in a better product, improved health and safety, more effective enforcement and the protection of Canada's reputation for high quality control standards in relation to agri-food products. In today's highly competitive market, there is no doubt we must do all we can to enhance our reputation for quality and in fact deliver high quality food to the world's consumers.
In order to ensure that the system operates as effectively as possible and to avoid frivolous appeals, the government is making available a fine reduction option. Offenders who pay their fines without asking for a review will receive a 50 per cent reduction in their penalty.
Reviews cost money and this option is used by other departments in other jurisdictions quite successfully. While this may seem counterproductive to some, let me remind everyone that the administrative monetary penalty system stresses compliance and not punishment. The department does not see this initiative as a money making venture. It will gladly reduce or even waive a fine if the offender is willing to show compliance with Canada's regulations.
While criminal prosecution will still be an option, AMPS will lead to better compliance rates and more effective enforcement action taken by the branch. The administrative monetary penalties will enable greater enforcement of compliance among importers, thereby helping to create a level playing field for the domestic industry.
This move by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada is consistent with the initiatives being taken by other departments and with the entire regulatory framework in Canada. Transport Canada currently has an administrative monetary penalty system. The one being proposed for this department builds significantly on the transport model, and other departments are considering the adoption of this system.
This system has been developed in conjunction with the Department of Justice through the regulatory compliance project. One of the goals of this project is to look at alternatives to criminal prosecution of regulatory violations. In many cases criminal prosecution is considered too severe as this course of action can lead to a criminal record and even the possibility of imprisonment. This is another step in our goal of decriminalizing regulatory infractions.
Federal regulatory policies encourage the use of the least coercive alternative models. AMPS will provide the department and the food production and inspection branch with a less coercive alternative.
It pleases me to note that this administrative monetary penalty system not only has the support of a number of federal departments, but it has the solid support of industry associations as well. This latter support is, in my mind, the most important since it is the industry and our farmers who have not only asked for this but it is the industry that will have to work with it as well.
During recent consultations industry associations recommended the active enforcement of domestic standards to imported products. This is because Canadian industry needs to be able to compete on a level playing field if it is to remain competitive in the global market.
It is important also for Canada to protect its international reputation for high quality health and safety standards when it comes to agriculture and agri-food products. The introduction of AMPS was also one of the recommendations of the department's regulatory review undertaken in 1992.
The goal of the federal approach to the regulatory system is to create a regime that is not just cost effective but is flexible and addresses the realities of doing business in a new way. The government and the Department of Agriculture and Agri-Food require a system that is more cost effective and more appropriate.
To my mind, the administrative monetary penalty system meets all of these criteria. I must point out that the AMPS is also used by the United States department of agriculture where it has been shown to be very successful in increasing compliance. Our system will allow us to harmonize our regulatory enforcement with the United States and also with some of our trading partners in Europe who also use this type of system.
Better regulatory compliance will help industry not just at home but it will improve its global competitiveness as well. Increased compliance will help ensure that Canadian export products maintain their high reputation internationally. It will do so by enabling the department to take effective action against importers or domestic companies marketing products that do not meet Canadian health, safety or quality standards.
Business will welcome clear rules that will help to increase compliance and remove unfairness from the system. The agricultural community will welcome any activity that strengthens our enforcement at border points, increases equity of enforcement between commodities and promotes the marketability of Canadian products.
The system highlights the joint responsibility that governments and industry share for ensuring compliance. By consulting with industry the government has devised a system that will benefit everyone. It will give government inspectors a wider range of enforcement options when they are faced with regulatory violation. It emphasises compliance, not punishment, by permitting monetary penalties to be waived or mitigated if the violator takes corrective actions to ensure future compliance.
It will improve the competitiveness of industry at home by applying consistent standards to both imported and domestic products and abroad by helping to ensure Canada's protects its high reputation internationally.
I commend our minister of agriculture who has done a terrific job in identifying problems and going through extensive consultation on this issue and many other issues. As is typical, once this process is completed a very sensible, workable solution comes out the other end. I thank and congratulate the minister.