An Open Letter to Senator
Doug Finley About Bill C-36
by Zeb Landon l Simcoe, Ontario
November 16, 2010
 By rushing a new law through the House of Commons with only a few minutes of discussion and not hearing from any citizens or businesses who object to it, the government makes like it has not heard warnings of the serious harm the new law will bring on.
Letters of concern to MP Diane Finley were ignored and not answered. Therefore I appeal now in an open letter to you, and especially because this law is now before the Senate. The Consumer Product Safety Act (Bill C-36) is the new law disgracefully passed with hardly a word in the House of Commons, and now it is before Canada's Senate.
The government seems to have made a deal with the NDP, Liberals, and Bloc to keep this issue dumbed down and out of the spotlight. No controversy in Parliament means passing this law gets no attention in the media. Will the Senate be silent too?
How many Canadians know that Health Canada will now be allowed to trespass in business premises and seize product without a judge's warrant? And that being charged under the new law means you are 'guilty until proven innocent'?
Why is the government removing accountability from Health Canada bureaucrats? With no court or judge keeping an eye on Health Canada, it is only a matter of time before Health Canada raids an innocent business, that will not be able to defend itself, since Health Canada is prosecutor, judge and jury. -- Goodbye to a life's work building up a business, and the lost investment. Too bad also for the employees to be laid off.
Under confederation, health is supposed to be a provincial jurisdiction, yet nary a whisper about this incursion by the feds?
Many Canadians are also alarmed by a part of this bill that enables the governments of Canada's trading partners to impose basically foreign regulations onto Canadian businesses. Under the new law, Health Canada will be mandated to adopt any regulatory changes that trading partners may be pressing for, without debate or vote from our parliament. Why the silence of all the parties on this?
Are we not paying our MPs and Senators to do a job? It is their job to make laws for Canadians, not let Health Canada bureaucrats do it for them, by adopting and enforcing regulations from other countries, which may be unsuitable and hurt Canadian businesses.
You should not be giving away our democratic right to preserve a sovereign Canadian government to protect us. Letting Health Canada bureaucrats adopt foreign regulations for Canada without going before Parliament is wrong. You are taking away our rights.
Sadly, PM Stephen Harper actually admits on a recent Youtube video that our independence is being sacrificed.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=McWAnMWoSyY
While one could agree there are instances where Canadians' health and safety need protection by a law, why not simply update the Hazardous Products Act? Health Canada used its powers under the old law to get Bisphenol (in baby bottles) taken off the market in 2008. In contrast, the new law undermines our rights by making anyone that Health Canada targets 'guilty until proven innocent', and can hit them with ruinous daily fines. This removal of our normal protection of individuals and business through a court of law undermines our constitutional rights and pushes us centuries backwards.
It is not too late for you to stop the dangerous parts of this bill.
Sincerely,
Zeb Landon
CC: Senators, ...
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Letter to Hon. Diane Finley, MP for Haldimand Norfolk:
Subject: The new Consumer Products Safety Act (Bill C-36): a business-bullying act?
Date: Sun, 24 Oct 2010 18:43:41 -0400
From: Zeb Landon
To: Finley.D@parl.gc.ca
CC: Toby Barrett <toby@tobybarrett.com>, Dennis Travale
<dennis.travale@norfolkcounty.ca>, John Clement
<clement@christianfarmers.org>, John Hunt
<john.hunt@norfolkcounty.ca>, Marie Trainer <mayor@haldimandcounty.on.ca>
Oct 24, 2010
Subject: the new Consumer Products Safety Act (Bill C-36): a small business-bullying act?
Hon. Diane Finley, MP Haldimand Norfolk
Dear Madam, There are several alarming features about the new Consumer Products Safety Act (Bill C-36), so I hope you will not support it. If passed, it seems like a set-up for serious problems maybe not immediately obvious but down the road for providers of farm value-added natural products (such as ginseng, homemade pies, butchers, etc.). We could be looking at a succession of small
businesses being bullied or shut down as the Ministry of Health brings in more and more regulations that favour only giant
corporations and are impossibly expensive for small business.
Under the new bill, regulations need not be scrutinized by Parliament, since Health Canada is allowed to make "regulatory
change" on its own, as well as adopt regulations (which might be very unsuitable for Canada) that are thrust on us through various trade agreements.
You've probably already looked into some aspects of the bill that have been criticized, for example, that Health Canada won't require a warrant before trespassing into a business location, which is in contrast to the fact that police do require a warrant. While this
might appear harmless in some instances, we must consider what is likely to happen eventually: an abuse of power, since there is no one monitoring the HC inspectors and reminding them to keep things in perspective. Having to appear before a court judge to ask for a warrant is actually a good and sobering thing. A judge would not grant a warrant unless Health Canada had suitable reasons.
The chemical Bisphenol (believed to be a harmful in baby bottles, etc.) was "successfully" removed from the market place in 2008 by
Health Canada, so it is puzzling that the new Health Minister seems to incorrectly claim that our existing law has no power to deal with getting cadmium-tainted children's jewelry off the market. What's the big difference? Why do we need a new law? If it had the evidence of a health risk almost a year ago, why did Health Canada not proceed against the cadmium jewelry dealers in a similar manner that Bisphenol was proceeded against in 2008?
Another aspect of the Bill that seems very questionable: Apparently Health Canada, for example, could order a product recall (presumably getting a business to make the recall voluntarily), but then, very strangely, according to Bill C-36, Health Canada would not have to make public the fact of the recall. This is inconsistent, since, if the product was dangerous or risky enough to be recalled, why shouldn't the public be notified about the product, in case not all the product is recalled, or in case some of the product is still
being used by consumers?
Where is the requirement of accountability on the part of Health Canada when it takes an action against an enterprise? If the
operation of a business is interfered with, and financially hurt, should this not be documented properly in case of dispute? And why,
in case of dispute, is there no neutral third party? Why is Health Canada now not only policeman and prosecutor, but as well the sole
judge and jury? That must be very intimidating for any business to have to face. We don't want a Health Canada that is a bully, but this legislation sets it up to be just that.
If a vigilant and innocent entrepreneur whose business is damaged by a Health Canada action is prevented by the new law from suing, to obtain compensation for harm, what deterrent is there to prevent Health Canada from repeatedly making careless or arrogant mistakes? These could very often destroy a business and jobs that go with it, and cause bankruptcies and serious hardships for families.
The changes brought about in Bill C-36 give unbalanced powers to Health Canada, which it did not have under the Hazardous Products Act. Complacency and arrogance could easily become traits of the Ministry, since proper scrutiny of its actions is lacking. Over time, this will embarrass the government, do no good for Canadians, and become a tool of bullying against small entrepreneurs, whose life efforts could go up in smoke through interference or blunders or arbitrary rulings. The time to prevent a wrong course with this bill is now, not later.
These are a few of the questions that have come up, and it is puzzling to me that all the political parties have agreed to fast-track this Bill into law, in spite of glaring flaws. Please, you must have studied the bill. What are your thoughts on the matter?
Sincerely,
Zeb Landon, Simcoe.
CC.: Toby Barrett, MPP; Dennis Travale, Mayor of Norfolk County;
Marie Trainer, Mayor of Haldimand County; John Hunt, Norfolk
Councilor; John Clement, CFFO
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