Mr. Speaker, in a letter dated April 9, 1998 the health minister acknowledged the difficulty of requiring drug companies to verify safety and efficacy if drugs are approved conditionally. He actually wrote “I do not think we should wait for such a situation to occur. Rather we should put into place a new policy and to follow as soon as possible with appropriate regulations”. Twenty months after that we do not have regulations, only the approval of six new drugs of dubious safety status.
Why is the Minister of Health condoning an unlawful policy? Why has he neglected his role as guardian of Canada's much needed health protection system?