House of Commons Hansard #150 of the 41st Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was safety.
Sadia Groguhé NDP Saint-Lambert, QC
Mr. Speaker, we all appear to be on the same page with this motion, which is extremely important.
Furthermore, it is important to consider the compensation that the government will give the victims of this drug. However, I have a question for my colleague.
We are talking about fair compensation. What does the government have in mind, to ensure that this compensation is similar to that being offered by other countries?
Opposition Motion—Survivors of ThalidomideBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders
Conservative
Ben Lobb Conservative Huron—Bruce, ON
Mr. Speaker, I think that the Thalidomide Victims Association of Canada would have some of that information. Obviously, I do not have that information. However, the association is going to meet with the minister next week, and I think that will be a starting point at least.
Certainly in any of the material I have read from the Thalidomide Victims Association of Canada, it does not list a dollar figure, and I am not necessarily sure that the victims are looking for a specific dollar figure.
We mentioned respect, dignity and support, and when we put all of those things together, I think that is where we start to look at how to support these people as they age in maintaining a meaningful lifestyle that is as independent as possible.
Elizabeth May Green Saanich—Gulf Islands, BC
Mr. Speaker, it is quite an honour today to participate in this debate. It is one of the good days in this place when we feel we are making progress to right a wrong, and it is a historic wrong.
I thank my hon. colleague for again mentioning Vanessa's law.
I was quite struck when Bill C-17 was first tabled to realize that even after the thalidomide scandal, the Minister of Health in this country lacked the power to recall a pharmaceutical drug until we passed Vanessa's law in this place. That is decades of inaction against an obvious threat.
We have not yet done enough as a society and as a Parliament to ensure transparency and proper regulation of the pharmaceutical industry. We have further to go, although Vanessa's law represents a significant turning point in being willing to insist on recalling drugs and ensuring that the positive and negative drug trial results are published, to avoid a future thalidomide disaster.
I want to thank my hon. colleague and all MPs in this place for making some progress for both the victims of thalidomide and toward avoiding a future disaster of that order.
We really need to control the pharmaceutical industry.
Opposition Motion—Survivors of ThalidomideBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders
Conservative
Ben Lobb Conservative Huron—Bruce, ON
Mr. Speaker, I do not think we would have moved as far as we have with Bill C-17, Vanessa's law, if not for the member for Oakville.
We were elected at the same time, but the member for Oakville was faced with a terrible death in his family. He has made it one of his life's missions to educate Canadians and people around the world on some of the glaring weaknesses in our regulatory regime. I believe that he has raised the level of knowledge in debate in the House of Commons on this topic, and he should be thanked as much as possible. He has done a great job.
Often the pharmaceutical companies' best defence is to pay a fine, and then they are off scot-free in a lot of ways. However, Vanessa's law changed that, and anybody in a company, especially at senior levels, who knows of an issue with a drug and continues to produce it will face severe penalties in fines, which could include jail time. I think that is the most important piece of this legislation. It makes those executives and senior managers responsible for the products they are selling to Canadians.
Peggy Nash NDP Parkdale—High Park, ON
Mr. Speaker, it is one of the more important days in the House to be able to stand and speak. It is not only a subject which is extremely important, but one in which, because of co-operation on all sides of the House, we are able to have a serious and full debate without resorting to the extreme partisanship that sometimes takes place in the House.
I am pleased this afternoon to share my time with the hon. member for Churchill.
During my time, I would like to speak first of all about the importance of drug safety and of regulations.
Sometimes governments today, and many people and theoreticians in our society, talk about the value of deregulation, of leaving everything up to the marketplace. Surely, the issue of public health and safety, and something as specific as drug safety, are a very key and important role for government. In the case of thalidomide, the government clearly did not do its job. The government, for whatever reasons at the time, failed to protect the health and safety of Canadians.
The use of the drug thalidomide in Canada has been rightly called one of the most serious drug catastrophes anywhere.
I have met individuals who were affected by thalidomide. They are charming people. They are like normal people everywhere, except they have very serious physical deformities. The people I have met are incredibly courageous and dignified. In spite of the incredible barriers they face, they try to live their lives as fully as possible, and with as much dignity as possible.
It is important that we have a strong regulatory regime to ensure that we have drug safety. It is important for Canadians to count on their government, whether it is in the area of pharmaceuticals, or it is food safety, transportation safety, all areas where people would normally rely on their government to look out for their best interests.
In the case of thalidomide, we had a situation where a drug that was not permitted by other governments was approved and sold in Canada. It was a drug that was designed to reduce nausea in pregnant women. Women rely on their doctors and on public safety laws to ensure their safety, especially during pregnancy. In my own pregnancies, I was hyperconscious of my safety. Pregnant women are always concerned about what they are breathing in, what they are eating and drinking, to make sure that the safety of the fetus is protected. In the case of thalidomide, unlike other governments, the Government of Canada failed.
I want to salute my colleague from Vancouver East for her work in the broad field of health, and also her work with thalidomide survivors. I also want to thank her for bringing forward today's motion. The motion calls on the House to provide full support to the survivors of thalidomide, recognize the urgent need to defend the rights and dignity of those affected, and provide support to survivors in co-operation with the thalidomide survivors task force.
It is important that the relationship be one of collaboration, co-operation, and respect, not of charity. These individuals did nothing wrong. Their parents did nothing wrong. They believed in the government and the regulatory regime of the day, and sadly they were failed.
I have been contacted by many community members about this, all calling for the government to right this wrong, and to support the thalidomide survivors in Canada to ensure they not only get compensation and support, but to ensure that such a public health disaster never happens again.
I have a letter that is particularly moving. It is from a constituent who elaborates on the facts that we now know about thalidomide and its impact throughout the 1960s. She was personally affected by this public health catastrophe because her sister was one of the victims of thalidomide. I was very moved by the letter from this constituent. She wrote to me and my provincial counterpart about her sister, Kim Beeston, the very first thalidomide baby born in Canada, who was delivered in hospital in Toronto on January 20, 1962.
A photo of her with her parents holding their bright-eyed, smiling girl was featured in The Globe and Mail. For years Kim was followed by the media. She became an avid swimmer, competed in wheelchair basketball, and hitchhiked across Canada with her dog Sam. She was an activist, pressing for wheelchair-adapted housing. However, she then began to withdraw because her body began to fail her and she had chronic pain. Sadly, she passed away over a decade ago in a one-bedroom public housing unit in Toronto.
She had a great deal of scarring across her body because of the impacts of thalidomide. She had almost non-existent legs and very deformed feet and toes. She was born with the damage of thalidomide, and her sister said that its shadow trailed her to her death.
The day after she died, her father took his life. He left a note addressed to his daughter. He was apologizing to her, said her younger sister. He felt responsible that he could not be there 24/7 to care for her. Ultimately, he was blaming himself.
This family's story is a lesson about the forgotten fallout of thalidomide. The need to relieve the victims' suffering is evident. The tragedy of the Beeston family began when Kim's late mother swallowed a pill with her doctor's blessing. The ripples of that single act never stopped.
On behalf of Kim and her family, the sister wrote:
It is time the Canadian Government took responsibility for this horrific event in our history, the remaining Thalidomide Survivors deserve no less!
Therefore, I would urge all members in the House to think not only of the Beeston family but of all of the thalidomide survivors. Let us ensure that these survivors are compensated, are supported, are treated with respect, and that their needs are dealt with in terms of support and accommodation for the rest of their days. Let us also reaffirm to Canadians that we must never, ever fall prey to ideological communications that somehow convince us that government does not matter and that everything should be deregulated and left up to the private sector alone, because that indeed was the origin of this tragedy.
I will conclude there. However, I would like to thank my colleagues on all sides of the House for this important debate today. I urge the government and all of us to get this done quickly.
Raymond Côté NDP Beauport—Limoilou, QC
Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague for her speech.
Clearly, thalidomide victims feel that the government needs to take action, but there is the added challenge of getting the Canadian government to focus on the issue. Unfortunately, the past has shown us that the federal government's focus is often elsewhere, no matter what party is in power.
There are some very troubling aspects to this issue. We learned that the thalidomide survivors task force has been trying since March to get a meeting with the Minister of Health. They have been unsuccessful. In September, the group sent the minister a report. This week, the minister admitted to The Globe and Mail that she had not yet read the report.
I would like to know what the hon. member for Parkdale—High Park thinks about that inaction. Is she confident that thalidomide victims will get justice in the future?
Peggy Nash NDP Parkdale—High Park, ON
Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague for his question.
If we compare the reactions of this and previous governments to the reaction of governments in Germany or the UK, for example, we see that the latter have already compensated thalidomide victims. In fact, they give the victims thousands of dollars every year. In the United Kingdom, for example, each victim receives $98,000 Canadian annually. It is an important recognition of the government's responsibility for having caused this tragedy.
On a side note, it is really unbelievable that the minister did not even read the report from the thalidomide survivors task force.
However, today we have the opportunity to turn that inaction around. We need to take urgent action to support and compensate the survivors.
Jinny Sims NDP Newton—North Delta, BC
Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague, the member for Vancouver East, for bringing this motion forward and for her very eloquent and emotional speech about a very important subject.
Those of us who were young at the time this time happened and heard the stories, or were part of some of that debate or at least listened to the debate around thalidomide, were really touched by it. Many of us were very fearful. I remember being very fearful when I was about to have my first child about whether this could happen to my baby. There was a lot of fear instilled at the time because of what we saw and heard.
My question to my colleague is around deregulation and proper oversight. I hear so often of the need to get rid of red tape and let the market explode with free choice and all of those kinds of things. However, I think this kind of thing is a marked reminder of why we need regulations and why government has an important role to play. Could the member expand further on that idea?
Peggy Nash NDP Parkdale—High Park, ON
Mr. Speaker, I think that gets to the crux of the question here.
Free, in terms of free the market, sounds very good, but in fact what we saw with thalidomide is that there was a terrible price to pay. It is not free. We all learned as we became adults that rules are usually there for a purpose, and there are some rules that we need to obey because they make for a better society, whether it is a stop sign or not allowing poisons to be ingested by pregnant women.
As I said earlier, sometimes ideology that talks about free this and free that is very seductive, but a society needs to co-operate. We all act more productively, more coherently, and more safely when we act in concert.
Safe regulation and coherent regulation is part of that responsibility. We failed in the past; let us not fail in the future.
Niki Ashton NDP Churchill, MB
Mr. Speaker, I am honoured to rise in this House to speak to our opposition day motion. It is truly a historic opposition day motion that serves to realize justice for the victims of the thalidomide scandal and for their families.
We know that in 1961 the Government of Canada approved the sale of thalidomide as a safe drug to treat nausea in pregnant women. The drug had tragic consequences for many families. The government has never apologized for the devastation it caused. After decades of discussing compensation, it provided an inadequate one-time payment to survivors. Our motion calls upon the government to right the wrong and commit to support thalidomide survivors.
What is critical for us is threefold. One, we need the government to right the wrong and support thalidomide survivors in our country. Two, we need to recognize that drug safety is a clear federal responsibility. The federal government approved this drug as safe for use by pregnant women and bears the responsibility for the suffering of innocent Canadian families. Three, victims of thalidomide have waited for over 50 years to get the support they deserve. Canada's thalidomide survivors are considerably worse off than their peers in other countries. They need support and compensation now.
We know that this is truly a global tragedy. Approximately 10,000 thalidomide survivors were born worldwide. We may never know how many Canadian families were ultimately affected by thalidomide, but today fewer than 100 survivors are still alive in Canada.
Decades of dealing with the consequences of thalidomide have left survivors dealing with very severe and debilitating pain. In many cases, their health care needs exceed what provincial health care systems are able to provide. Fifty years of attempting to work around their limitations has taken its toll on them. Many survivors are now suffering from nerve damage and painful wear and tear of their bodies. This has caused enormous challenges for them, including loss of ability to use their limbs to care for themselves; damage to their spines and joints, which severely limits their mobility; limited ability to maintain employment; and dependence upon others for basic tasks, such as using the toilet, dressing, and preparing meals. The deterioration of their health has placed them in a precarious financial situation in which they are dependent upon aging parents, unable to work, and further losing their self-sufficiency.
While the Government of Canada began discussing compensation for families affected in the 1960s, the only support provided to the families to deal with their urgent needs was a small lump sum payment made in 1992.
We recognize today that we were pleased to see the government's support for our opposition day motion; however, in that support, we also expect a true understanding of the concept of righting the wrong. It involves not just an apology but financial compensation.
As the status of women critic, I work with advocates for disabled women and disabled women themselves. I am constantly struck by how disabled women in Canada face some of the highest rates of poverty, some of the highest rates of violence, and some of the highest rates of marginalization.
In fact, we know that as many as 75% of disabled women in Canada are unemployed. The average employment income for women with severe or very severe disabilities was only $17,459 per year in 2006. Obviously thalidomide survivors could relate to that experience. We know that disabled women in particular, but also people with disabilities more broadly, often face extreme housing insecurity. They are either unable to access affordable housing or the affordable housing that may exist is not accessible to people living with disabilities.
I have also come to know through my work that advocating for women, particularly women with disabilities, is particularly challenging, because organizations that represent the disabled are cash-strapped and often have to deal with major restrictions when it comes to applying for funds and grants to be able to continue their advocacy, if it is even allowed, which in many cases it is not, as we have seen under the current government.
There is no doubt that thalidomide survivors have fallen into the category of the severely disabled, but in order to understand what they went through, we need to recognize that their story has everything to do with the federal government having shirked its responsibility decades ago.
We know from other countries, including the U.S., that rigorous work was done to ensure the safety of thalidomide, and it became clear that it was not safe at all. However, in Canada, the same was not done. The same due diligence was not exercised by the federal government at the time.
Many women, who I am sure were very happy to know that they were pregnant, were told by their doctors, people they trusted, who in turn trusted others, that thalidomide would be okay, and they took it to deal with difficult symptoms during pregnancy. However, it is particularly disturbing that this chain of command went through the federal government.
The federal government had, and continues to have, a responsibility to ensure the safety of the pharmaceuticals that Canadians use. However, the government at the time shirked that responsibility. It is a simple, clear pinning of responsibility on the government, which failed to do the due diligence that was required at the time. Sadly, it led to devastating impacts.
This is very much connected to the issue of maternal health, which is an issue I have been very involved with as the Status of Women critic for the NDP. We are pleased to see that the government is supporting this motion, but at the same time on the broader issue of maternal health, we have seen the Conservative government failing many times to take a leadership role.
I will speak for a moment about the importance of supporting pregnant mothers, and mothers after they have had children, making sure that they and their children, whether babies, toddlers or grown children, are healthy.
The reality is that we do not see that kind of leadership and support from the current federal government. In fact, in Manitoba there is a cutting-edge program known as “Strengthening Families”, which focuses on the health of indigenous women, children, and families in 16 first nations in the province. Even though it has received accolades from experts in the field of maternal health and has made a marked difference for first nations in Manitoba, it is devastating to know that the government is willing to cut the program by the end of this fiscal year. Therefore, success, when it comes to maternal health, is clearly not recognized by the Conservative government and not valued, because if it were, the program would be extended.
Maternal health is an integral part of the discussion around thalidomide. It an integral part of the discussion on how we can move our country forward and ensure that women, children, and families are better off across Canada.
As we deal with these broader issues, I am honoured to stand here today with my colleagues. In particular, I want to recognize the leadership of my colleague from Vancouver East, who has stood up for these 95 Canadians and the so many more who, sadly, are not alive to tell their story. They need justice, and ultimately their families need justice, and Canada needs to see that justice as well.
Robert Aubin NDP Trois-Rivières, QC
Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from Churchill for her presentation.
I would like to tell her that having been born in the 1960s myself, my first experience with the consequences of thalidomide came when I met classmates in my own classes who unfortunately were affected because their mothers had taken this drug. I became aware of this illness very early. I am very moved to see that this motion is getting unanimous support in the House this afternoon and that everyone wants to move forward on this.
I want to ask my colleague whether she thinks that this wonderful unanimity that we have here today could possibly lead to the creation of a real program, so that this issue could be resolved before the next election, which is 11 months away, and whether it could become in some way a tangible example of the empathy this House has for the people we represent.
Niki Ashton NDP Churchill, MB
Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for sharing his personal experience.
When I was a little younger, we learned in school about the progress that had been made, so that we would know that thalidomide was dangerous, for example. Now the entire House has an opportunity to change the course of history. As Canada's leaders, we have an opportunity to show some leadership.
I hope that the Minister of Health and her government will respect the spirit of this motion, namely the need for urgent, immediate action. We are losing more and more victims every year, and their families are also waiting for us to act as soon as possible. We must do so.
Nathan Cullen NDP Skeena—Bulkley Valley, BC
Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for her excellent discussion and for taking this tragic case in Canadian history, which has impacted so many families and so many lives, and through her speech describing not just the role that must be taken by government, but also the consequences if that role is not taken properly and responsibly by government to protect those who, through no knowledge of their own, were being given a drug.
In one of my first years here in Parliament, I moved a private member's bill to ban a form of chemicals in children's toys. The bill passed through the House unanimously and went to the Senate. The reason we banned this chemical was that it would cause great disruptions within children, including cancer, We used for the principle of the legislation a thing called the “precautionary principle”, enshrining for the first time in law the idea that we should be cautious in approving things, particularly if there are early indications of problems.
I am very glad to see the government supporting this, including compensation for the victims who are still alive and with us. The challenge I have with government is around its agenda of deregulation, of handing over the duty to protect the screening of these drugs increasingly to the pharmaceutical companies that are promoting and selling the drugs. To deregulate and allow the so-called fox to watch the henhouse is a troubling pattern.
I do not think right can be made to the victims who suffered by this drug being administered and given to pregnant mothers. That is going back and remains important today, but going forward, how can we have a government that actually protects Canadians and does not ask companies to do something they are ill-equipped to do, which is to be both the promoter and the tester of the safety of the very drugs they are looking to make a profit from?
I wonder if the member could make some comments to those observations.
Niki Ashton NDP Churchill, MB
Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from Skeena—Bulkley Valley for turning part of the focus of this discussion to the role of the government in regulation. While we are working in good faith on this very issue, the reality is that the current government has an abysmal record when it comes to looking out for the safety of Canadians. We are not just seeing a dangerous path being taken when it comes to pharmaceuticals. As we have seen with our own eyes, communities in this country have paid a high price for deregulation when it comes to rail safety. We have seen it when it comes to environmental safety. We have seen it when it comes to our food supplies.
Regarding this spirit that has taken over and the desire of the government to right wrongs of the past, I hope that same sentiment and precautionary principle will be taken and applied, and that a result the Conservatives will increase regulation and support those who keep us safe, in whatever sector they might be, so that we do not end up here 50 or 60 years later having to find recourse for the deep, tragic mistakes that we have made.
Opposition Motion—Survivors of ThalidomideBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders
Conservative
The Acting Speaker Conservative Bruce Stanton
The hon. member for Oxford is rising on a point of order.
Dave MacKenzie Conservative Oxford, ON
Mr. Speaker, there have been consultations between all parties and if you seek it I believe you will find consent for the following motion. I move:
That it be an instruction to the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs to: (a) examine policy options for addressing complaints of harassment between members of the House of Commons; (b) make recommendations concerning a code of conduct for members for the prevention and resolution of harassment in the workplace, including a clear definition of harassment; (c) make recommendations concerning a fair, impartial and confidential process, including options for the role of an independent third party, for resolving complaints made under the code; and (d) make recommendations concerning training and education initiatives to ensure compliance with the code; and that the committee report its findings and recommendations to the House with all due haste.
The Acting Speaker Conservative Bruce Stanton
Does the hon. member for Oxford have the unanimous consent of the House to propose this order to the committee?
Procedure and House AffairsCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings
Some hon. members
Agreed.
The Acting Speaker Conservative Bruce Stanton
The House has heard the terms of the order. Is it the pleasure of the House to adopt it?
Procedure and House AffairsCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings
Some hon. members
Agreed.
The House resumed consideration of the motion and of the amendment.
Kevin Lamoureux Liberal Winnipeg North, MB
Mr. Speaker, it has been interesting to listen to the many comments and debate on what is a very important issue that obviously touches a number of Canadians in a very real and tangible way, as we try to do what is right, and that is provide the compensation that is necessary to compensate for the tragedy that occurred during the 1960s.
The motion says:
That, in the opinion of the House: (a) full support should be offered to survivors of thalidomide; (b) the urgent need to defend the rights and dignity of those affected by thalidomide should be recognized; and (c) the government should provide support to survivors, as requested by the Thalidomide Survivors Taskforce.
On the surface, this is a motion that does need to be supported. It is encouraging to listen to the many members standing in their place and indicating support. That has come from members of all political parties, including from the leader of the Green Party.
I suspect, and we all hope, that it will in fact pass with the unanimous support of the House. I know representatives from the advocacy group, the task force, were hoping to see a strong commitment going forward, prior to meeting with the Minister of Health.
What we are witnessing today is just that, a commitment to recognize that what happened in the past does need to be rectified, even though there appears to have been some form of compensation package many years ago. Obviously, that compensation package has fallen short, and there is a huge need for us to provide an adequate package that would at least provide the type of care and financial compensation to improve the quality of the lives that have been directly affected.
In looking at being able to provide some comments, I did read one article in particular in The Globe and Mail from last week. I would encourage members, if they have the opportunity, to read the article. It is a very touching article. There is a photograph attached of Johanne Hébert, someone who was touched by thalidomide, and it tells of the impact it has had on her life; she is now 52 years of age.
If members get the chance to look at it, they will find it is a wonderful story. It highlights the issue in the sense of a personal story, also presenting some of the facts that have led us to where we are today.
I appreciate the fact that the New Democratic Party has used one of its opposition days as a way to build that consensus inside the House of Commons, which will give the support we believe is necessary to advance a very important issue, that being compensation.
If I might just give some of the background, thalidomide was actually synthesized in West Germany back in 1954 and was used as a sedative or anti-nausea drug for pregnant women. Health Canada licensed thalidomide for prescription in 1961, even after reports of the drug causing birth defects in 1960, and it remained legal until March 1962.
There was an indication that there were some problems. As has been pointed out, the U.S. actually never did authorize it. It is also important to recognize that there were a number of countries—I believe it was more than 50 countries—that actually did authorize the drug. It is not unique to Canada. It is a drug that was authorized here, unfortunately, and we all know what took place as a result. Even after the reports of the drug causing birth defects in 1960, it did remain available until 1962.
At the time it was unknown to doctors that the drug could pass through the barrier of the womb and harm the developing fetus. Experts estimate that thalidomide led to the death of approximately 2,000 children, and caused serious birth defects in more than 10,000 children. This does not include the potential thousands of miscarried and stillborn babies.
We cannot help but wonder about the feelings and emotions at the time. I was born in 1962, which would have been in the timeframe in which many women across Canada who felt nauseated or had morning sickness would have been inclined to take this particular drug, which was being recommended by doctors. At the time, many doctors were in fact recommending this drug. As any pregnant woman would do, in consulting with her doctor, they followed that advice.
On the one hand, a doctor prescribed a very safe medication, to the best of his or her knowledge, that would ultimately provide some relief to a pregnant mum, only to find out that the drug was not in fact safe. One can only imagine the social impact, even mentally, for pregnant mums back then once it was discovered that the medicine they had taken had ultimately led to a child having to endure excruciating pain. It is hard to imagine someone having to go through that.
As has been pointed out, an estimated 10,000 children had some form of birth defects. This does not include the potential thousands of miscarriages to which I made reference. For those who survived, the birth defects included missing or stunted limbs, deafness, blindness, disfigurement, cleft palate, and internal disabilities such as stunted growth or missing organs, cardiac defects, disease, and many other abnormalities.
It has been pointed out that Canada was one of the last countries to end the sale of this particular drug. As has been already pointed out by a number of members, there are some 95 thalidomide survivors in Canada, obviously all around the age of 50, who are living with deteriorating health and disabilities.
There have been a number of lawsuits against pharmaceutical companies, resulting in compensation plans here in Canada. In 1991, after a decade-long campaign by the War Amps of Canada, the federal government announced a $7.5 million compensation plan for survivors, with one-time payments ranging from $52,000 to $82,000. It was the understanding at that time that these Canadians would not survive long. Many had that thought.
However, today, as was pointed out, we have 95 thalidomide victims who are still surviving but having to endure serious ill health, chronic pain, and chronic disabilities, which impair their ability to care for themselves.
That is why I said earlier in some of the questions I put forward that we not only need to acknowledge the role we have to play in terms of compensation and coming up with financial compensation, but we also have to ensure that there is the practicality of providing that care. We can do that by working in co-operation with different provincial agencies that ultimately deliver a lot of the care we are referring to, specifically health care and living arrangements, which would include having specialists visit the homes of some of the clients.
By comparison, I made reference to countries such as Germany and Britain earlier, where they have already come up with some compensation packages. Members of the Liberal Party and I believe that it is a two-part compensation. There is the immediate financial compensation and the ongoing financial compensation, which ensures that their health and well-being are taken care of. In Germany and Britain, some of the cases amount to somewhere in the neighbourhood of $88,000 to $100,000 annually per person.
The motion itself requests that the government provide support to survivors based on requests from the thalidomide survivors task force, to which I have referred for the efforts it has put in. We have, no doubt, over the last number of years, had members of Parliament—some more than others—who have really tried to tune in to this particular issue and do what they can in advancing it and advocating for it. However, the real champions here, in my opinion, are the advocacy groups. They are the individuals who have been able to persevere and make sure the government does the right thing, and it has been a long time in coming.
They are the real heroes on this particular issue, and I extend my congratulations. Hopefully, that is not premature. I do believe that the goodwill we see here today will continue on into the very important meetings that are going to be taking place between the Minister of Health, the advocacy group, and the victims of thalidomide.
The task force actually launched an official campaign, called “Right the Wrong”, which called on the government to provide survivors with $100,000 annually per person and a $250,000 lump sum payment. I am not sure if that is the actual amount that is being advocated today. However, it is important that we have these types of advocacy groups to bring something that is tangible and that we can bring to the table, which the government can look at and appropriately budget for. I think this is a reasonable suggestion, and while the health minister has not yet met with the victims, we do understand that the meeting will take place.
There are some other important points that are worthy of mention. As I have indicated, there are the 95 survivors today who are living with this severe disability. Canada's drug approval system failed these Canadians once. They need the compensation and the government's support now and for the rest of their lives. The government has a clear responsibility to assist thalidomide survivors who suffer from severe pain and disability and are unable to take care of themselves.
Personally, I think what makes this a unique situation is the innocence of it all. I pointed this out earlier. We had a drug that was brought into Canada. We had Health Canada, which gave its approval for the drug, and then we had medical doctors recognizing that the drug had been approved by Health Canada and believing it was okay for them to prescribe the drug. That is what they did, not knowing about the consequences.
It is important to recognize that we have the science today for the clinical testing of medicines, or new drugs coming on stream and that the checks we have in place today are there in part because of this experience we had during the 1959 to 1961 time span. I would like to think that Health Canada learned a great deal on how bad things could get if it did not do its job or it did not do it right. On the whole, in comparison to around the world, Health Canada does a great job in ensuring drugs have been approved and are safe. However, there is room for improvement.
One of the ways we have demonstrated this improvement is Vanessa's Law, legislation that was passed unanimously by the House. It was a private member's bill brought forth through the initiative of one member who was able to share it with the House. The House saw the value of Vanessa's Law and that bill received unanimous support. The biggest benefactor of that is the public as a whole, because knowledge is gold.
In discussion with our health critic, she mentioned that Europe posted the clinical trials for new medications. We should look at this. There are different ways to look at why we are not as transparent in providing the information to the public when drugs are faulty or cause adverse reactions. Are we doing enough on the issue of public information? There are ways we can still improve on the system. As I say, Vanessa's Law is a great example of how we can still make a difference.
I want to emphasize something I had mentioned at the beginning. We should try as much as possible to put a real face on this issue. Earlier today I read an article from the Globe and Mail from last week. I do not know the day it appeared on Internet, but I suspect it was printed in the newspaper. It is a wonderful story.
I want to compliment Johanne Hébert for having the courage and the wisdom to share her story, through the Globe and Mail, with all Canadians. It is because of individuals like her that we are able to build on consensus and make a difference in Ottawa. I would like to think that the reason we will pass this motion unanimously is because of the efforts of individuals like Johanne and others who have done such a wonderful job in presenting this case and showing that we have not provided justice on this issue.
Hopefully by passing this motion, and the Minister of Health meeting with the advocacy group, that justice is just around the corner. We know it cannot be quick enough.
Therefore, we within the Liberal Party would ask the government, particularly the Minister of Health, to act hastily in trying to resolve this and provide that agreement as quickly as possible.
Libby Davies NDP Vancouver East, BC
Mr. Speaker, I certainly appreciate the support from the hon. member. I would agree with him that the real heroes are the incredibly strong advocates, the thalidomide survivors who have had the courage to speak out and to be visible. They have brought forward this incredible tragedy of what is happening 50 years after to full public light. For sure, the Globe and Mail article from last Saturday was pretty amazing.
We should also thank a public relations firm called Campbell Strategies, a former member of Parliament. People at that firm have been working truly pro bono with the Thalidomide Survivors Task Force for about a year and a half on this issue. We all recognize it is really hard to bring something forward and get that kind of national attention. When it happens and things come together, it is very powerful. That is what has happened. The very important role and ongoing work that Campbell Strategies has provided in supporting the thalidomide survivors with a communications strategy has helped them to bring this story forward.
The member mentioned Bill C-17. He also mentioned that in Europe clinical trials are fully disclosed. He is correct; that is the situation.
We debated Bill C-17 in the House and it was passed unanimously. In committee, the NDP brought forward probably 23 amendments, several of which were about full disclosure in clinical trials. Whether the trials are positive or negative, our belief is that we need to have full transparency and disclosure. This information is often used by researchers and it is often information that is used in other clinical trials. That kind of full and public disclosure is really important. Unfortunately, all of those amendments were defeated. The bill itself is a very important step forward, but I would agree with him that we still have more work to do on this file.
Does the member believe it is critical to have public oversight of these kinds of issues in terms of drug safety? We never want to see a repeat of what happened with the women who took thalidomide, thinking it was a safe drug. This kind of oversight is very critical.
Kevin Lamoureux Liberal Winnipeg North, MB
Mr. Speaker, it is absolutely critical, as we move forward, to look at ways in which we can improve upon the system. However, I never really believe that we have to reinvent the wheel. If there is a system out there that is working well and seems to be effective in providing more transparency and accountability, then there is nothing wrong with taking a good idea. I made reference to the European model, which is something the Liberal Party health critic has talked about. It is something we should move toward.
I share the sense of frustration that I detect from the member when bringing forward amendments. In other governments, from what I understand and have been told in the past, amendments from opposition parties were given real consideration, and quite often amendments would pass. However, that has not been the case with the Conservative government, and I know it can be frustrating when one is trying to improve upon legislation.
In regard to the member's other comments, we can always sympathize, but empathy is another thing. Having been born with this crippling disability and having to live one's life in the type of pain and discomfort the victims of thalidomide have had to endure for 50 years plus, is something we cannot really comprehend. This is why I want to highlight how brave these individuals have been, not to mention the parents of an afflicted child back then, who quite possibly had a sense of guilt.
We owe it to the survivors and their families to get this thing right and to do it hastily.