Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to engage in this debate. Those of us who have been here for a few years have seen my hon. colleague from Mississauga South speak to this issue many times. I think it was one of the first bills that I had the opportunity to seriously engage in such a detailed discussion with my colleague on why he thought it was critically important to have warning labels on alcoholic beverage containers. He feels so passionately about this issue. I think he captures almost everybody's attention at one point or another and insists on having five minutes to discuss it.
Let me mention some things for which alcohol is directly or indirectly responsible. Over 19,000 deaths each year are somehow or another as a result of alcohol. Forty-five per cent of motor vehicle collisions are attributed to alcohol. We continue to hear from MADD and other organizations about the need for tougher regulations and more education, which is again the key to an awful lot of these issues that we are dealing with.
Thirty per cent of fires are connected to alcohol. Someone might have a few too many glasses of alcohol and there are lit candles and before the person knows it, the place is on fire. Thirty per cent of suicides, 60% of homicides, 50% of family violence and 65% of snowmobile collisions are as a result of alcohol. Two years ago a constituent's son was killed in a snowmobile accident. Two snowmobiles collided head on. The collision was tied to alcohol. One in six family breakdowns, 30% of drownings, 65% of child abuse, 40% of falls causing injury are related to alcohol. At least 50% of hospital emergencies are somehow or another related to alcohol.
There is over $15 billion in additional costs to Canadians. It is a huge cost to our health care system. There is a human cost as well in family breakdowns and other situations surrounding alcohol. The least thing the government could do is add labels to educate people about the dangers of alcohol in its many different forms. It would certainly help save a huge amount of money in our health care system, and could help in numerous other areas that we have to deal with, such as family breakdowns.
The subcommittee on health issues report in June 1992 made a variety of recommendations. It said:
The Sub-Committee is aware, as were most of our witnesses, that warning labels on containers of alcoholic beverages will not, by themselves, completely solve the problem of FAS and FAE, nor will they effectively reach all segments of society. Problem drinkers and alcoholics will probably not be sensitive to label warnings. The design and presentation of a warning label is vitally important to its effectiveness.
On that particular point I would like members to recall the issue of tobacco warning labels. I am sure my colleague who was the former chair of the health committee will remember that issue and the controversy around putting warning labels on cigarette packages and how that would cause huge problems.
It is quite amazing that people are still smoking. The warning labels are very clear and they have discouraged some smokers. I do not think we have any numbers yet; in any case, I do not have them this morning. Certainly the warning labels have discouraged a lot of people from smoking.
Those warning labels are scary. That people would look at those labels and still pick up a package of cigarettes amazes me. It is the effectiveness of the label that is being put on the box. It has clearly been supported in the tobacco industry. I think it would be far more effective in the alcohol industry.
The subcommittee examined several examples of warning labels on alcohol products from the United States. In all cases the warnings were generally inconspicuous and difficult to read. Going back to following the example of what was done with cigarette packages, it is essential that the warning labels adopted for Canadian products not emulate the United States' example. They should be carefully designed for maximum visibility and impact.
I would hope that when this bill eventually passes and becomes law we would look at what was done as a result of recommendations from the health committee on the labelling of cigarette packages as a prime example of a success story. We believe that properly designed and printed warning labels are an essential part of a comprehensive strategy for increased public awareness and education about the risks that maternal alcohol consumption poses for the fetus.
In particular, we continue to hear that 60% of the people in our penitentiaries suffer from either FAS or FAE. The cost to society as a whole, to government and the taxpayers is enormous on issues like this.
I would like to think that it all comes down to the issue of education and ensuring that people know what the dangers are of consuming alcohol while pregnant. We want pregnant women or women who want to become pregnant to realize what effect alcohol has on the fetus. We have to do everything possible to ensure that men, women and children are educated so they understand there are severe dangers. We cannot stick our heads in the sand and think that alcohol will not harm anybody. Statistics and studies have shown that it causes a huge amount of harm.
Going back to the subcommittee report, one of the recommendations was:
The Sub-Committee recommends that the Minister of Health and Welfare Canada should amend the Food and Drugs Act and Regulations to require that containers for beverage alcohol sold in Canada, including beer, wine, and spirits, should carry an appropriate warning label alerting all consumers that consumption of alcohol during pregnancy places the foetus at risk for Foetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) or Foetal Alcohol Effects (FAE).
That was in 1992. This is not a new issue. It is an issue we have been battling for a long time. My colleague from Mississauga South and members of the health committee have worked very hard to ensure that we actually get warning labels established.
This is not something new. The United States already does it. Maybe the U.S. labels do not do as good a job as we would like them to, but they are doing a job. There are 20 countries that already have alcohol warning labels. I mentioned the United States. The other countries are: Portugal, Spain, India, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, Mexico, Brazil, Costa Rica, Armenia, Iceland, Guatemala, Honduras, Argentina, Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela and Zimbabwe.
Where is Canada? I have always been very proud to think that Canada was leading the way on many issues. Of all of those countries, I would have thought that Canada would be in front and not at the back of the pack and still not providing warning labels. It is clearly something that is way overdue. Other countries are considering it. I would like Canada to adopt this bill, so we can move forward on the issue of warning labels. Hopefully it would prevent a lot of men and women in the future from suffering from both FAS and FAE.
We would all be really proud if we were able to pass this bill and start to see warning labels. Let us make sure that we educate Canadians, especially young women, on the dangers of alcohol. Let us do everything we can to protect future generations.