moved for leave to introduce Bill C-251, An Act to amend the Customs Act and the Customs Tariff (forced labour and child labour).
Mr. Speaker, only one shipment from all regions of origin combined has been seized and detained at Canadian customs due to the use of forced labour in the manufacturing of the products it contained.
In contrast, the United States has seized millions of U.S. dollars' worth of goods arriving from a single region of origin. One thing cannot be denied: The Canadian model is a failure. The Liberal government must be aware of this, since it committed to tabling a similar bill before the end of the year in the 2023 and 2024 budgets, and yet it did not do so.
I am therefore pleased to table this bill today, which will emulate the U.S. model in that the importer will bear the burden of proving that goods originating from certain entities were not produced using forced labour. That is what is in effect in the United States, and this system is working very well. We do not want our goods to be tainted with blood.
(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)