Jane Philpott

[Questions on the Order Paper, January 30th, 2017]

Mr. Speaker, the new legislation, An Act to amend the Criminal Code and make related amendments to other Acts (medical assistance in dying), formerly Bill C-14, authorizes the federal Minister of Health to make regulations for the purpose of establishing a system for monitoring medical assistance in dying.

With regard to (a), a process for monitoring and reporting on medical assistance in dying is currently being developed. While most sections amending the Criminal Code to permit the lawful provision of medical assistance in dying came into force with the passage of the legislation, the sections on monitoring, sections 4 and 5, will come into force 12 months later--i.e., June 17, 2017. This means that the federal Minister of Health’s authority to make regulations with respect to monitoring will only become active at that point, but it does not require that the regulations be completed by that time.

For these reasons, (b) and (c) are not applicable.

With regard to (d), federal officials are currently working on the parameters of a federal monitoring and reporting system, including what information will be collected; to whom it must be sent; information technology requirements; and how information will be protected, analyzed, and released. The complexity of these regulations and the consequences for health care professionals require that the government must take the time necessary to get the regulations right, and include opportunities for consultations. Until these federal regulations are in place, health care professionals will not be required to provide information to the federal government; however, each province and territory has its own approach to the implementation and oversight of medical assistance in dying and may require its health care providers to provide data for these purposes.

All governments in Canada recognize the importance of timely public reporting on medical assistance in dying. To this end, federal, provincial, and territorial officials are working collaboratively to produce interim reports with available national data during the regulatory development period.

The government expects an initial release of data in early 2017. Subsequent interim reports will be released on a periodic basis until annual reporting commences under the federal regulatory regime.

[Indigenous Affairs, January 30th, 2017]

Mr. Speaker, any loss of life is a great tragedy and it grieves us when we hear about indigenous young people taking their lives. We know that the roots of the suicide crisis among indigenous youth are deep and complex, but we are working with our partners, indigenous leaders, and provinces to make sure we have supports for people.

Our government has invested $69 million to make sure there will be 24 mental wellness teams, as well as crisis support teams.

We will continue to support these youth and put an end to this crisis.

[Health, December 13th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member opposite for his very important work on this matter.

He certainly knows that autism spectrum disorder has a significant and lifelong impact on individuals and their families. We have made significant investments in this area, for instance, through the Canadian Institutes of Health Research. The government has invested more than $27 million on direct research related to autism in the last five years.

We are committed to working with all partners to help Canadians with disabilities to participate in our society, including work with the Canadian Autism Spectrum Disorders Alliance. They bring the perspective of those living with autism and their families.

I have received the proposal indicated by the member, to establish a Canadian—

[Health, December 13th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for Vancouver Centre for her outstanding advocacy on this very issue.

We have introduced an approach to drug policy in this country that is comprehensive, collaborative, compassionate, and evidence-based. We recently held an opioid summit and conference, at which 42 organizations made commitments as to what they were going to do to address this very crisis. Yesterday, I was very pleased to introduce the Canadian drugs and substances strategy, which will put control of that strategy into the hands of the minister of health, where it belongs.

We will add harm reduction as a pillar into our response, and we will make sure that Canadians—

[Health, December 13th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, the member opposite is well aware that Canada is facing a serious public health crisis and the hundreds of Canadians who have had accidental overdose deaths this year. We were pleased yesterday to introduce the new Canadian drugs and substances strategy, which will save the lives of Canadians. It will take a harm reduction approach to this serious public health problem. We will recognize the wisdom of the Supreme Court, which gave us guidance as to the factors that had to be taken into consideration, including making sure that communities were appropriately consulted on these matters.

[Justice, December 13th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, we were very pleased this morning that the cannabis task force presented its report. We look forward to reviewing its recommendations in full detail. We know this task force was well led by the Hon. Anne McLellan, that the experts on the task force heard from Canadians across the country, including those who understood the evidence around all of the questions that were put to this group.

We look forward to introducing legislation in the spring, which will legalize, regulate, and restrict access to cannabis.

[Health, December 12th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, the situation that the member raises is a tragedy. My heart goes out to the family and anyone who has lost a loved on due to the flu.

An important defence against influenza is a flu shot, which is why I got mine already this year. We will work with all provinces and territories to promote vaccination.

I encourage Canadians to talk to their health care providers about getting their flu shots, or visit healthycanadians.gc.ca to find out where they can get theirs.

[Health, December 12th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, the member has said that this is a delicate matter, and indeed it is. I hope that the member is also aware that there is an abundance of evidence that supervised consumption sites, when properly established and well maintained, will save lives, prevent infections, give Canadians access to health care systems, and when they have the approval of the communities that want them and need them, they are important to the health of Canadians.

[Health, December 12th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, I expect that the member opposite is well aware of the fact that we are facing in this country a very serious and growing public health crisis. In this crisis, hundreds of Canadians have lost their lives. It is absolutely essential that we together find ways to be able to support Canadians. Our approach to drug policy will always be comprehensive, collaborative, compassionate, and evidence based. I look forward to making sure that we have policies in place to support Canadians.

[Agriculture and Agri-Food, December 8th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, our government takes matters of health and safety very seriously, and Health Canada reviews pesticides on a regular basis. As part of that scientific review, Health Canada found that a particular pesticide, imidacloprid, can be found in concentrations up to 290 times of what is an acceptable risk in water. Given this risk, Health Canada is proposing a phase-out of agricultural uses for imidacloprid.

There is a proposal. It is evidence based. It is sensitive to the realities of farmers while proposing steps to protect the environment.