Mr. Chair, the hon. member is right in that my predecessor did indicate that he was going to take a look at the whole question of the “light” and “mild” descriptors on tobacco product packaging. After that, consultations were put in place and research has been done in relation to a number of important areas.
I am going to be quite candid with the hon. member, as he would expect. We want to make sure that when we move in this area, we have the science to back up the decisions we take. Otherwise we know full well that we will be spending a lot of time in court and a lot of taxpayers' dollars. What I would like to do is make sure that we have the science in place and we have done the research so that we have a compelling argument in relation to the descriptors “light” and “mild” and therefore, we can withstand any challenge, including a charter challenge, in relation to these descriptors.
Let me tell the hon. member that I take this issue very seriously. My department takes it very seriously. I would be wrong if I said that the scientific inquiry is over. In fact, we do not have all the answers as a matter of science at this point. I am also looking at the experience of the European Union. It has taken a somewhat different approach in terms of how it has dealt with these descriptors. I am looking at the experience of Brazil. I am looking at the approaches of various countries and then what tobacco companies do--