Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to have the opportunity to speak to this bill, since it bears some explanation in our current situation.
I want to make it clear that the bill is not designed to determine whether or not horses should be slaughtered as a general practice. Personally, I agree that if a horse is healthy and its meat is healthy then it can be slaughtered and its meat can be consumed. It would not bother me in the slightest to eat it. I would be pleased to do so if I knew it was safe.
The problem identified by my colleague's bill is the safety of horsemeat. Currently, food safety inspection systems do not allow us to be sure that the meat we are eating is safe. The various food crises we have gone through testify to that. No one here would want to eat meat that was likely to make them sick.
That said, the horses slaughtered in Canada have often not been raised for the end purpose of human consumption. This includes slaughtered race horses. They are given injections of a number of medications, treatments and analgesics. Several of those products can end up on our plates.
Unfortunately, some drugs are impossible to detect, so even if the meat is tested to find out whether it has been contaminated by such and such a product, it could test negative because the substance in the meat is not there in sufficient quantity to be detected. However, it would still be toxic for a human consuming it. Even at levels that are undetectable by conventional tests, substances of that kind could be dangerous. That is the problem we currently face.
What my colleague is specifically saying is that, while we wait for food inspection systems that are safe, especially for horsemeat, we cannot continue to do nothing, knowing that the meat is not only consumed in Canada, but is also exported. We have to consider this bill in the context of food safety.
We can all understand that a person who raises a horse for consumption will not give it the same substances as a person who raises a horse for performance purposes. That is why certain products end up in that meat.
As far as raising animals in general is concerned, if I raise cows or cattle, I know they are going to end up on someone's plate. I will therefore pay a lot more attention to what my animals consume. I will obey the rules.
Standards are established based on scientific research, among other things. They help determine exactly how the meat of another type of animal may be safe for humans and what we must do to ensure food safety. Very detailed inspection systems are in place and people may lose the right to raise animals. There are very specific rules in place for the other types of meat.
As far as horse is concerned, not many people raise horse for consumption.
That being said, if someone decides to do so and has the medical reports for his horses, we totally agree that he can use them. We can be assured of the safety of the horsemeat. Unfortunately, that is not the case at this time.
If the government is prepared to pass my colleague's bill and implement measures to ensure the safety of horsemeat, then my colleague's bill will become law. If the law becomes unnecessary, the government could choose to repeal it and that would be entirely appropriate.
However, in the meantime, we cannot continue to allow people to eat meat that is not safe. Often, food products that are not so healthy, cost very little at the grocery store. The risk is that people who are especially vulnerable will buy this meat believing that it is safe.
For most people, it is logical to believe that if a product is sold in Canada, then it must be safe. That is what most people think. They believe that if the product is on their grocery store shelf, then it is a safe product. People with health problems may be more vulnerable, as may be single mothers who have to feed their children. They may say to themselves that the meat is less expensive. However, if they feed it to their children, it could cause health problems, especially if the children are more sensitive to certain substances.
I would like to remind members that this bill does not take a stand on the slaughter of horses. This bill is about the safety of horse meat, and we must vote accordingly.
I believe that there is enough literature available to realize that, at present, it is not safe to eat horse meat. That is why the United States took action. It understood the problem.
At present, the horses that the United States does not want are sent to Canada to be slaughtered. That makes no sense.
Food safety should be one of the government's priorities. That is why I urge my colleagues to vote in favour of this bill. I urge them to do so, but I also particularly urge my Conservative colleagues and the critics associated with agricultural issues to adopt the bill. If they refuse to act now, the NDP will act in 2015.
We need to find solutions to make horsemeat safe. We need to work on this right away and introduce a more comprehensive bill. Some flexibility is needed, but there is less flexibility when dealing with a private member's bill. Government bills can include budgetary measures, but this is not possible with private member's bills.
I therefore urge them to think about this and to pass my colleague's bill in the meantime. We cannot stand by when there is a health risk. We cannot wait for people to die or become seriously ill. We need to take action. We need to look at this issue to resolve, once and for all, the problem with the safety of horsemeat in our country.
I want to repeat that this bill is not against the slaughter of horses. If someone were to offer me horsemeat and could guarantee that it was safe, I would be happy to eat that meat.
