Mr. Speaker, the parliamentary secretary's initial remarks on who requested a public inquiry at committee leaves one wondering if he is really following the Prime Minister's advice that “we'll teach them a lesson”. Is there a black list that the Conservative members seem to be following of who they check out? I do not know how they check them out. How do we know if they donated money to the Liberal Party or not?
The fact is that people have a right to come before the committee and, if they so decide based on evidence, call for a public inquiry. That is what they did and that is what we supported.
On this point, the University of Manitoba food microbiologist, Rick Holley, a member of the academic advisory panel on food safety at the inspection agency said that lack of knowledge about food-borne illness, how it happens and its cost to society in terms of death and illness is a weak spot in the Canadian food safety system that none of the recommendations of the Weatherill report addressed adequately. He basically calls for more work to be done and that there should be a full public inquiry--