Mr. Chair, with respect to the earlier point the hon. member raised with respect to the registry of drugs, I will take her suggestion under advisement. I think it is an excellent suggestion. We will consider it. We do need an independent institution looking at some of these serious issues.
With respect to adverse drug reactions, I recognize that manufacturers and suppliers have an obligation and are mandated to report once they know of adverse drug reactions post-approval of the drugs. However, reporting by medical practitioners and consumers is of course voluntary. As I said a couple of times earlier, I am in favour of mandatory adverse drug reaction reporting.
I do recognize that there is the issue of online reporting and the lack of equipment or the appropriate mechanisms by at least 50% of the medical practitioners to report. I think that is an issue Health Canada needs to look at. I will also be taking a look at that issue because I believe we need stronger and better reporting of adverse drug reactions.