Mr. Speaker, I agree with the member that there are concerns in this area. Because of the amount of drugs we see, the cost of drugs, the effect of the cost on our population and the need to develop drugs to combat major diseases such as cancer and AIDS, perhaps it is time for somebody, whether it be the Minister of Industry, who is by the way a constituent of mine, or someone else, to take a hard look at the whole drug operation.
It is difficult perhaps for people to think that after they put time and effort into developing a product others will duplicate it quickly and sell it at a lower cost. If people do the original work developing something, whether drugs, cars or records, as I talked about, and others are allowed to copy, reproduce and make money on those efforts, the original investors will get fed up with it.
What happens if new drugs are not developed? That is the question we must face. How can we create an environment in which everyone benefits? It can be done. It takes leadership, co-ordination and proper legislation. If protective measures are not there for the forerunners in all this I am not sure what the result will be. We will have a lot more concerns than just the cost of drugs.