Mr. Speaker,I would like to point out that we are at the report stage of Bill C-71. Bills have a first reading and a second reading-and let us keep in mind that, with Bill C-71, the government saw to it that there was no debate on second reading; it was referred directly to committee. Now they are trying the same thing on for size at report stage, putting a gag on us. We will have a time limit for discussing this vital matter.
In the streets of Montreal, Trois-Rivières and Quebec City, people are questioning the government's desire to put an end to virtually all of the major cultural and sporting events with tobacco company sponsorship. It is important not to use this issue as fodder for stirring people up. It must be kept in mind that the Bloc Quebecois voted in favour of the principle of this bill at second reading. The Prime Minister said yesterday that he no longer understood Bloc members, that we should be more openminded. When a bill is debated on second reading, it must be realized that it is the principle that is being addressed.
True, we believe measures to protect the health of Quebecers and Canadians are important. Perhaps 80 per cent of the bill concerns things we consider important, particularly measures relating to the power to regulate tobacco products, measures relating to access to products, packaging and promotion. There are a number of measures the Bloc Quebecois supports, but there are some which need more work by members who should do some original thinking on the subject and perhaps go back to committee to look at some solutions to the sponsorship question. It is not true that there is a straightforward solution such as the one contained in the bill.
For instance, the jazz festival, with a total budget of $9.5 million, receives $1.5 million in sponsorship fees, which is 15 per cent of its budget. Today, 15 per cent often means the difference between cancelling an event or not, or guaranteeing that it offers quality programming and can attract a satisfactory audience. In the case of the fireworks, sponsorship fees represent $1 million out of a budget of $1.4 million. Clearly, without that sponsorship the event could be in serious trouble. The Festival Just for Laughs has $1 million in sponsorship fees out of a budget of $10 million. The Festival d'été de Québec gets $500,000 out of a budget of $4.5 million.
In each case, banning sponsorship or imposing conditions that will scare away sponsors will have the same result. So we are certainly not saying that we are against the health of Quebecers and Canadians and that we do not care about our children's health. Of course we want everyone to be healthy, and we realize that it is important for our quality of life. It is also important in economic terms, because prevention saves a lot of money in the long run.
Today, however, at the report stage we must consider amendments or proposals that would make this bill a piece of viable legislation, something sound that would pass the test of time but not at the expense of the people who have the jobs that would
disappear as a result of this decision. There are other aspects in the bill that deserve far more attention than they are getting right now, and there certainly should be no time limitation in this respect, and I am referring, for instance, to the matter of regulatory powers.
We should learn from the legislation passed during the past 15, 20 or 30 years, where the government basically tried to make up our minds for us, to regulate everything so people would no longer have to make up their own minds. I think people have realized there is no future in this approach, that there are no answers. We need an approach that emphasizes educating the public so that people can consider the various options and are free to do what they think is best.
Sometimes, reversing the onus of proof is not necessarily a wise decision. Some more fine tuning is necessary in that respect.
Why is the government putting a gag on this debate? It is now early March. There will be three weeks of debate between now and Easter, so we would have enough time to do a thorough job and end up with a bill everyone can be proud of. Let us not forget that, during debate at second reading, there was a fairly extensive agreement in principle, but there are problems that have yet to be resolved, that are still on the table. I would not like anyone to say that we are voting against the bill because we oppose the fact that the government wants to improve the health of Quebecers and Canadians. That is not the issue at all.
The issue is how to go about creating a law that improves the health of Canadians or is likely to, without doing so to the detriment of events that create jobs and provide people with reasonable situations? We cannot take away with one hand what we are giving with the other. There has to be a balance, and the bill is not satisfactory in this regard.
How can we go about finding other solutions in the area of sponsorship? Are there other forms of sponsorship we could consider, which would be attractive and sure of a market for the future? Could a support fund be set up and used? Could there be an extension so that businesses had the time to adapt and make adjustments? Could the $20 million used over the past year in the flag campaign not be set aside for this purpose? If this money were put in a fund to lessen the impact on sponsors so events could be held, would this not be a solution?
We may not have all the solutions right now, but one of them is not rushing this bill through, without examining things carefully and seeing how to go about protecting sporting and cultural events, especially those in Quebec. You may know that out of the $60 million invested in sponsoring this kind of event in Canada $30 million go to Quebec.
Is it chance, is it an unfortunate result, or is it a lack of sensitivity to Quebec's concerns, a lack of caring on the part of the present government? In any case, the result is that these cultural and sports events with economic spinoffs mostly in Quebec will be affected by this bill, which in turn will have a very negative impact on jobs.
Montreal is a city rich in cultural events and tourist attractions throughout the summer. They are held one after the other, creating non-stop economic spinoffs. The measures provided by this bill will result in adjustments of such magnitude that some events might have to be cancelled. We are not trying to stir up trouble when we say that we must give it more thought. We must review the situation and try to find solutions.
The Bloc Quebecois has asked the Minister of Health and the Minister of Canadian Heritage to offer financial measures in compensation and to act as politicians responsible for their actions, but we have had no response from the health minister, who has been stonewalling all the demands from the Bloc and other witnesses with similar requests.
What is the reason for such pigheadedness? Why is it so urgent to find a short term solution to this problem? This we cannot ascertain for the moment, but to conclude I will invite the government to think about the political impact of the steps it is taking now. Today it saw in the streets of Montreal and elsewhere the ire directed at its bill. I believe this is an argument it will listen to even if it does not want to listen to other more economic ones.
For all these reasons, I urge the government to think twice about this, to change its position and offer solutions that will allow sports and cultural events to survive and have an adequate economic impact in the years to come.