Leona Aglukkaq

[Multiple Sclerosis, June 14th, 2010]

Madam Chair, the MS Society made an announcement on June 11 to support further research. The MS Society of Canada and the MS Society in the United States say the following:

These new studies are necessary because we don’t yet know whether, or if so how, CCSVI contributes to MS disease activity.

We will continue to support these types of research in Canada and we will bring in the international community to respond to this possible new procedure. We will continue to work with MS societies in the United States and Canada to do further research.

To answer the question the member is raising, we need to bring in the research community, and that is what we will do.

[Multiple Sclerosis, June 14th, 2010]

Madam Chair, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research has been working over the last few years on neurological research, including MS. With regard to this particular issue, I have asked Dr. Beaudet to pull in the international research community to deal with how we can better address this new finding, as well, to identify within the global community what some of the gaps may be around MS research. That conference will be held in Ottawa. I am looking forward to how we can better support that research in this area.

We are also working with the MS Society on how we can better support the research projects with this specific new procedure. On June 11, members in this House may know that the MS Society made some announcements to support a number of research projects.

There is collaboration happening across the country with MS researchers, and we will continue that to find solutions for this issue.

[Multiple Sclerosis, June 14th, 2010]

Madam Chair, I will say again what I said in my opening remarks. There are a lot of investments being made to this research. We are working with the jurisdictions to move quickly on this new finding.

I have quotes from Ontario and from Alberta that state further independent and controlled studies are required to prove a better understanding of this particular result. The MS societies, both in Canada and in the United States, have called the early findings surrounding CCSVI “exciting and intriguing” but have said “more research is required to firmly establish the link between blocked neck veins and MS symptoms”.

On June 11, the MS Society released the following statement:

These new studies are necessary because we don't yet know whether, or if so how, CCSVI contributes to MS disease activity.

Our role in the federal government is to support the research in advancing this important work. We will continue to work with the various researchers, the MS Society, as well as the provincial health ministers and College of Physicians and Surgeons to advance this research.

[Multiple Sclerosis, June 14th, 2010]

Madam Chair, to respond to the question, we are taking the issue very seriously. This government has invested $120 million for neurological research alone, and $5 million for MS research.

We are working with the MS Society in pulling the research community together and looking at ways we can advance the clinical trials necessary for this particular procedure, and we will continue to do that.

I asked Dr. Beaudet, as I said in my opening remarks, to provide advice and pull the international research community together to see how we can advance this quickly.

We are also working with the provinces and territories to deliver health care and collaboration. It takes more than one individual to bring a team of scientists and researchers together to deal with this new, possibly important discovery relating to MS.

[Multiple Sclerosis, June 14th, 2010]

Madam Chair, the subject tonight's debate is in regard to multiple sclerosis. It is a devastating disease that usually strikes young adults.

I am delighted to be here tonight with my hon. colleagues to show our solidarity as members of Parliament with Canadians suffering with MS, and their families and friends.

I am also happy our government tabled the motion and asked for consent to hold this important debate in order that Canadians be as well informed as possible.

There are many aspects to this disease and its treatment. We know multiple sclerosis as a progressive neurological disease that slowly robs its victims of their mobility and their ability to speak. It robs them of their youth and robs them of their lives.

Every day in this country three more people are told they have MS. It is estimated that between 55,000 to 75,000 people are now living with MS in Canada. Some of us here tonight have family members and friends affected by this disease.

Being able to speak on the effects of this illness and the struggles, and there are those who see their loved ones fight this disease, is important and relieving. At the moment there is no cure for MS, but there is progress in research and we believe we will some day unlock the mystery of this illness.

Recently, news of a possible new treatment has captured the world's attention and given hope to Canadians who suffer from MS. I realize this news is a source of great hope for those who suffer from this disease.

In November of last year an Italian researcher, Dr. Zamboni, developed an experimental treatment for MS based on a possible relationship between MS and impaired venous drainage of the central nervous system. Many Canadians with MS and their families have contacted me to share their experiences and the importance of the findings for them.

I know all members have heard the same from their constituents. We share the hope that this has given those suffering from the disease. These findings challenge long held views on MS and have produced results that have drawn the attention of researchers looking into the causes of MS and other illnesses.

That is why we must pursue a thorough scientific evaluation to see who might benefit from the treatment and to see if there are long-term implications. The answers we are looking for can only come through studies and research done on a larger scale.

These studies are important for many reasons. They are important for Canadians with MS and their families who are filled with hope in the findings and want to see quick action. They are especially important to the provinces and the territories who deliver health care.

Canada's health care system is built on partnership that recognizes and respects the unique roles played by the federal government, the provincial and territorial governments, health care institutions like hospitals and health care practitioners, including the medical doctors who administer the treatments. It is a system that requires collaboration in the best interest of patients.

All of us in this chamber know the territories and provinces deliver health care. This means they make decisions on the administration and delivery of health services, including the treatment and diagnosis of multiple sclerosis. We also know the provinces and territories make these decisions based on the best available science.

The federal government's role is to support health research, which includes clinical research aimed at discovering and assessing new diagnostic treatment procedures. This research plays an important role in confirming and validating new scientific findings and helping the provinces and territories make decisions.

Our government understands the importance of health research for the Canadian health care system. That it is why in budget 2010 we increased funding to the Canadian Institute of Health Research by $16 million. This increase alone with other recent investments to CIHR will mean over $1 billion to health research in Canada this year.

This new funding will allow CIHR to build on the investments we have already made in neurological research. In 2008-2009 roughly $120 million was invested by CIHR, including $5.3 million specifically for multiple sclerosis. Another $38 million went to stem cell research, which could have an effect on the way we treat a wide variety of diseases, including multiple sclerosis.

Our hope for a new treatment for MS and other neurological diseases comes from advances in science that helps us understand the disease.

That is why I asked Dr. Beaudet, president of the CIHR, for his advice on how to advance research in MS in light of Dr. Zamboni's findings. I am extremely pleased that Dr. Beaudet will be holding a round table discussion with more than a dozen world experts on MS to seek their advice.

With the guidance of the world-leading experts and in collaboration with the MS Society, the CIHR intends to get a better understanding of the research being done around the world on neurovascular-related MS. The CIHR wants to identify gaps in the current research and develop a better understanding of any obstacles that may be standing in the way of clinical research.

Investments in neurological research by the Government of Canada means we are building on a foundation of strength. With over $45 million to date invested in MS research, Canadian MS researchers are among the best in the world. They are pursuing important research questions showing great promise for MS and other neurological diseases.

For example, at the University of Toronto, Dr. Courtney is looking at the links between vitamin D and the risk of childhood MS as it affects the progression of the disease. There may be a link between vitamin D and the controlled gene that increases the risk of multiple sclerosis. If we can reduce the risk of childhood MS by giving vitamin supplements to expectant women, there may be implications for adult onset MS.

At the University of Alberta two researchers are studying the use of antioxidants as a nutritional supplement during pregnancy to prevent brain injury. That research is adding to our understanding of how to prevent the damaging effects of low blood flow during pregnancy. Low blood flow is a restricted oxygen supply that can cause brain damage in the fetus. It is hoped that our broader understanding may help prevent brain injury. That research is particularly relevant now because the new treatment for MS is based on improving blood flow to the brain.

With the research now going on in Canada and around the world, we are getting closer to finding better treatments for MS and hopefully a cure.

Scientists are intrigued by the potential links between CCSVI and multiple sclerosis. CIHR welcomes and encourages funding applications from researchers wanting to study this new treatment. We know that good science does not happen overnight. Science demands a measured approach. Science produces results that can produce again and again under the same set of circumstances.

We also know that Canadians with MS in their families want action now. Through CIHR our government will balance the urgency of this issue with the importance of asking the right questions and getting the right answers.

Canadians with MS and their families are asking us to all work together to respond to their suffering and to recognize the great hope that this new finding may generate. Our government is committed to working with CIHR and the MS Society to bring the research community together.

The upcoming meetings of experts on MS with Dr. Beaudet will be an important summit of scientists on the issue. Their thoughts and opinions will help the CIHR, in the months ahead, and the research community develop its strategy on how to research this potential new treatment for MS. It is of interest from a scientific perspective and a great interest to all of those suffering from the disease and their families.

I would like to thank all members who are here tonight representing loved ones in their fight with MS. We will undoubtedly hear many testimonies about or from victims of this debilitating disease. We are here tonight to provide a forum of discussion because it is important that we stand together to show Canadians we are working toward a solution.

This is a time when partnership matters more than ever. Dr. Zamboni's finding challenges not only the scientific understanding of MS but challenges us all to work even harder to support our fellow Canadians with MS and their families. With hard work and strong will, together we will work toward a cure.

[Questions on the Order Paper, June 10th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, in response to a) The international health regulations, IHR 2005, require that state parties, by June 15, 2009, assess the ability of existing national structures and resources to meet the minimum core capacity requirements for surveillance and response. As a result of such assessments, state parties are expected to develop a plan of action to ensure those core capacities are present and functioning by June 15, 2012. Through a network of IHR champions, drawn from each province/territory and federal department or agency, Canada completed an assessment exercise in May 2009. The results of this assessment exercise were reviewed by the IHR champions at a national IHR roundtable in June 2009. It was concluded that Canada met the minimum core capacity requirements, but there were areas that required strengthening from a national perspective, including information sharing, mortality surveillance and detection of severe respiratory illness of unknown cause. At the last meeting of IHR champions on April 21-22, 2010, a plan of action was developed to address these areas, and work is underway to implement those actions. Provinces and territories, as well as federal departments and agencies, are responsible for developing action plans addressing any issues specific to their jurisdiction. A report describing the capacity assessment process, its findings and the plan of action, will be published before the fall of 2010.

In response to b) A number of notable actions are underway to work towards a 'national health surveillance system', NHSS: i) The Public Health Agency of Canada, PHAC, has laid down, and continues to develop, corporate building blocks--frameworks, policies and tools--that are essential to relationship and trust-building across jurisdictions, in order for an NHSS to take shape and be successful. These include the development and implementation of an integrated framework for surveillance; a data quality framework; a draft privacy management framework; a PHAC policy on the collection, use and dissemination of public health data; a web-based tool for privacy impact assessments; and, a PHAC risk management standard and tools to support implementation. ii) PHAC is currently developing a business plan to modernize the Canadian Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System. This is a significant undertaking to ensure the alignment of notifiable disease surveillance elements, from data collection to reporting, across all jurisdictions. iii) PHAC officials are involved in pan-Canadian data standards work and will increasingly be taking a leadership role to promote the jurisdictional consistency in the use of data standards that will be necessary in the adoption of electronic health records, EHR. iv) Through the surveillance and information expert group of the pan-Canadian public health network, the agency is leading the development of the multilateral information sharing agreement, on which there has been recent progress. Details follow in response to the next question.

In response to c) In September 2009, federal/provincial/territorial ministers of health signed a memorandum of understanding, MOU, on information sharing during a public health emergency. The MOU establishes a framework for the sharing of information between jurisdictions. A formal FPT multi-lateral information sharing agreement is now being developed and will include the details of what information will be shared with whom, when and/or how. Detailed negotiations are underway through the pan-Canadian public health network and conference of deputy ministers of health.

In response to d) Currently, work associated with the multi-lateral information sharing agreement is being integrated within the workplans of the relevant expert groups of the pan-Canadian public health network and the pan-Canadian international health regulations action plan. Canada is required to demonstrate that the core components and functions to support the obligation to report internationally are in place by June 2012. Work on the multi-lateral information sharing agreement will play a key role in assuring that the necessary information for monitoring IHR compliance is available from the provinces and territories. While this work will contribute to the relevance and success of the agreement, detailed negotiations through the pan-Canadian public health network and conference of deputy ministers of health are still required to complete the agreement. Given the complexity of this process it is difficult to determine an exact date for when the agreement will be available for signature by ministers.

[Canada Consumer Product Safety Act, June 9th, 2010]

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-36, An Act respecting the safety of consumer products.

(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)

[Aboriginal Affairs, June 9th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, our government is committed to the health and safety of Canadians. As a minister from the north, I know full well the impact of tuberculosis in our communities.

Our government has almost doubled the spending on the prevention and treatment of tuberculosis in our aboriginal communities. We continue to support health care in the provinces and territories by increasing the transfer payments by 6% this year as well.

The approach we are taking is broader than prevention. We are also investing in housing, nutritious food, clean water, poverty. Bill C-32, the tobacco legislation--

[Health, June 7th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, we have responded. Health research on the new techniques, such as this one, is critically important.

That is why we have invested $120 million for neurological disease, including $5.3 million for MS. In addition, we invested $16 million in budget 2010 to CIHR for research. I have also asked Dr. Alain Beaudet, president of CIHR, to provide me with advice on how to advance this important research.

I continue to work with the MS Society and CIHR. We are encouraging MS researchers to put applications forward for this new treatment.

[Health, June 7th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, this is our priority and we will be introducing, in the next few days, new legislation related to consumer product safety in Canada. We will continue to work with industry in the rollout of that.