Madam Speaker, in a speech on October 2, I said “Research and development is a key component for any society wishing to be fully prepared for the 21st century. Economic prosperity is increasingly the result of research and technological development, rather than the development of natural resources”. That quote fits in well with the very basis of today's debate on drug patents.
Private Member's Bill C-248, an act to amend the Patent Act, introduced by the hon. member for Regina—Lumsden—Lake Centre, is not votable, but it is very timely. The hon. member certainly had good intentions in introducing this bill to reduce the cost of health insurance and drugs for consumers, but the arguments, and the amendments my hon. colleague wants to make to the Patent Act, are weak and open to dispute.
I am, of course, opposed to the way this bill greatly weakens the present regulations as far as a 20-year drug patent protection is concerned. The Bloc Quebecois has always stressed the importance of maintaining that twenty years of protection, and I will defend that position in my speech. I will take this opportunity to counter the arguments advanced by the sponsor of the bill.
First of all, a study published on February 27, 1997 by the Patented Medicine Prices Review Board shows that federal regulation of the price of patented medicines saved Canadians and Quebecers between $2.9 billion and $4.2 billion between 1988 and 1995. In 1995 alone, the savings were between $846 million and $1.1 billion. I would point out that the board was created in 1987 under Bill C-91, which enacted amendments to the Patent Act, increasing the protection for drug patents.
As well, the price of patented medicines has risen an average of 1.6% since 1988, compared to a 3.1% increase in the consumer price index. In 1995, the average price of patented medicines in Canada dropped to a level 7% lower than the mean in other countries. In 1994, the cost of patented drugs represented 2.5% of the total expenditure of the Canadian health system, while generic ones and other non patented medicines accounted for 3.7%.
It is therefore totally wrong to say that the regulations passed under Bill C-91 caused a catastrophic increase in the cost of drugs when the bill became law, as the NDP member would have us believe.
Following the introduction of Bill C-91, drug manufacturers, especially those with their head offices abroad, invested substantially in research programs in both Canada and Quebec. This support helped Canada and primarily Quebec to narrow the ever widening gap between us and our competitors, such as those in the G-7 countries, in the levels of investment in basic research.
In 1988, investments in the health sector by pharmaceutical companies producing patented drugs represented 18% of the total. In 1995, the figure reached 37%. There is no doubt that, if Canada does an abrupt about face and once again offers less patent protection than other developed countries, the growth in the pharmaceutical industry in recent years will be reduced to nil.
Bill C-91 was intended to protect intellectual property, and any amendment that would limit its application could well harm the industry in Canada, and thus the pharmaceutical industry in Quebec. Because this is my responsibility, my concern is and must be to consolidate one of the largest industrial clusters.
Our economy is becoming a knowledge-based economy, particularly technological knowledge, which is the main force behind growth in the economy and improvement in quality of life. Technology and increasing productivity are therefore now at the very heart of the job debate.
Unlike the generic drug industry, the patent drug industry funds basic research, which, by the way, has been underfunded since the Liberals came to power. Cutting funding further would dry up the source for the development of new drugs, which help us improve our quality of life.
The question that arises is this: Would the generic drug industry be thriving if this basic research were not being done? Would there be anything for it to copy?
It is therefore wrong to say that the regulations that came into effect as a result of passage of Bill C-91 have resulted in a catastrophic increase in the cost of drugs.
Once again, this bill is an attempt to use the cost of drugs as an excuse for weakening the 20-year protection. This bill is becoming less important because, just under a month ago, the Minister of Industry introduced proposals to amend the regulations. Consultations are presently under way and anyone wishing to intervene on this subject may do so.
Therefore, because we have not forgotten the poor and the ill, because we want a better quality of life for our fellow citizens, and for all the other reasons given, the members of the Bloc Quebecois will be voting against Bill C-248.