Mr. Speaker, when this government set up the Canadian Institutes of Health Research it was the first of its kind in the world. Made up of 13 virtual institutes, it provides a collaborative network for researchers across the country, linking basic academic in vitro scientists with applied in vivo researchers.
The CIHR spans a broad spectrum of issues from the economics of health care to genomics. Its virtual nature allows for easy access and collaboration with low infrastructure costs. The CIHR is uniquely and innovatively Canadian.
This week researchers from across the country are visiting Parliament to applaud this Liberal government's initiative and to explain how the CIHR has not only reversed the Canadian brain drain, but also attracted non-Canadian researchers from around the world.
Canada is now seen as a worldclass centre for research. However the CIHR's worth is only as good as the support we give it.
I urge our government to continue to maintain, sustain and expand the CIHR so that it can continue to place Canada on the front lines of innovation.