Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the questions from my colleague. He raises several important points.
The first point is about the amount of business that a number of multinational brand name drug companies control and the kind of power they exert, obviously over this government and over citizens globally. We only have to look at the battle as referenced by my colleague from Burnaby, the battle of the citizens of South Africa to get access to generic drugs to deal with the spread of HIV and AIDS and the kind of opposition they encountered from the brand name drug companies. That kind of power has to be stopped. That is why we have government: to bring some balance into this whole area.
The other issue pertaining to the Senate is certainly an important one. It surprised us on February 20 to learn that this issue was being dealt with through the other House, the other place, through the back door. We have a lot of questions for the government. Why did it choose that route? Why was it not at least direct with the Canadian people and with parliament? The situation speaks for itself. The government must be embarrassed by this kowtowing to the these corporate brand name drug companies and international bodies.
Finally, it is very important to point out again how many voices are on the other side of the issue. I want to refer very briefly to a letter from the Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions, which expresses anger over the Canadian government's capitulation to the demands of transnational corporations and international trade agreements instead of defending Canadian citizens.
In a letter to the Minister of Industry on March 9, the union says:
Who would deny a pharmaceutical manufacturer a healthy profit for an effective drug? But is that the reason legislation has been introduced in the Senate...to extend patents from 17 to 20 years? No.
Clearly this is not about drug company bottom lines: the pharmaceutical manufacturers are extremely profitable.
It went on to say:
Contrast this with the plight of many other older Canadians or the working poor who must spend what little money they have on prescription drugs. As you know, some seniors face the nightmare of choosing between heating, eating or prescription drugs. Not all seniors face this kind of crisis, but most report that prescription drugs take a huge bite out of their budget at a time in their lives when few can afford it. In fact, though many are covered by provincial pharmacare programs, they don't cover the first hundred or more dollars in drug purchases. Even these seniors will be affected.
The government should listen to some of the organizations like the Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions, the Canadian Teachers' Federation, the Manitoba Society of Seniors, the Canadian Association of Retired Persons and other groups that know what it is like to deal with the pressures on their members and citizens they encounter on a day to day basis. It is time for the government to act for the public good.