Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to have the opportunity to elaborate on a question I raised in the House last week pertaining to mercury in fish. In fact I raised several questions last week as a result of an indepth investigative report done by the Ottawa Citizen , backed up by independent laboratory testing, which showed that mercury levels in several species of fish available in the marketplace today, including shark, swordfish and fresh and frozen tuna, were twice the limit set by Health Canada, if not more.
The news that was generated from that story was greeted with a less than positive response by the government. I was shocked that this finding was not treated more seriously by the government of the day. I had fully expected that the parliamentary secretary or the Minister of Health would have stood in the House and said that the findings concerned them and they would investigate and take appropriate action.
Instead the response of the government was as follows. The suggestion was that these fish in fact were gourmet fish and therefore were eaten in such limited quantities that the impact on human health was negligible. This statement was made despite the fact that there are no studies or findings to determine levels of consumption of those species of fish in Canada today.
The government then suggested, and the Minister of Health in particular, that Canada's limits were so prudent that we could afford to take a risk with high levels of mercury in certain fish. The Minister of Health suggested that our limits were twice the limits set by the United States.
I point out that the limit set by Canada, which is 0.5 parts per million of mercury in fish, is a limit that is genuinely accepted across the board in numerous countries. According to the government's own information and statistics, Canada is not dissimilar from many other countries and in some instances is less prudent than other countries.
Also it is important to point out that when it comes to the United States, which is often cited as an example of having a less than cautious regulatory approach, the real level used that helps consumers make decisions is on par with those of Canada.
Our concern in raising this question is not scaremongering or fishmongering, as the Minister of Health so foolishly suggested in the House. It is to require the government to take the necessary steps to ensure consumers are protected.
I ask again if the government is prepared to issue warnings to all consumers so that they are aware of the levels of mercury in fish and so that pregnant women in particular can take necessary precautions. I also ask the government to issue an advisory to all fish sellers across Canada asking them to provide some notification to consumers purchasing these products.
In the absence of government action and leadership, fish retailers and wholesalers across the country are making decisions on their own. They are in a quandary as to what to do. They expect and demand action from the government. I think it is a reasonable request and I would ask the government to respond accordingly.