St. Catherine’s MP Rick Dykstra was on a local talkshow this morning trying to allay fears that have been stirred up by the natural health products industry regarding Bill C-51 (An Act to Amend the Food and Drug Act ). As previously noted , Cambridge MP Gary Goodyear is also trying to address concerns.
This Bill has caused quite a fuss in our family because there are a few members who are very into natural health products, and quite suspicious of the ‘Big-Pharm’. Others of us believe there is a place for both natural remedies and prescription drugs.
Anyway, Rick Dykstra’s message basically was that this bill would not prevent Canadians from purchasing their beloved natural health products – it would merely attempt to force them to support the claims they make as to effectiveness, and ensure that the product is safe. All this seems entirely reasonable to me.
Rick mentioned the Government website healthycanadians.ca as a resource to obtain more information. Specifically, there is section dedicated to answering questions about this Bill. Many of the urban legends floating around lately are dealt with on this site.
What interests me in all this is the animosity between the pharmaceutical and natural products industries. The degree of suspicion and almost religious zeal on either side is astounding. ‘Big Pharm’ is probably concerned about the increasing popularity of natural health products, and producers of the latter are likely concerned that government red tape may affect their bottom line.
And the bewildered consumer is caught helplessly in the middle.
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Update : Concerns raised about proposed bill – Star .
Fire Them all
I agree with Ezra . Time for the Harper Government to stand up for freedom of speech – especially now the RCMP is involved.
Bloggers and MSM pundits across the political spectrum will be watching this one.
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Update : Ezra Levant on MDL .
Wednesday Update : Ezra discusses how he believes the CHRC will spin the story – CTV’s Mike Duffy Live .
Great column here by Professor Mark Mercer – Bad Times for Free Speech. I am inclined to agree with him. Let’s get rid of Section 13 . However, that doesn’t mean we need to throw out the baby with the bathwater.