Proceedings of the Standing Senate Committee on
Agriculture and Forestry

Issue 12 - Fourth Report of the Committee

WEDNESDAY, March 5, 1997

The Standing Senate Committee on Agriculture and Forestry, has the honour to present its

FOURTH REPORT

Your Committee, to which was referred the Bill C-60, an Act to establish the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and to repeal and amend other Acts as a consequence, has, in obedience to the Order of Reference of Tuesday, February 18, 1997, examined the said Bill and now reports the same without amendment but with the following observations and recommendations, which reflect concerns raised by some witnesses and Committee members.

Bill C-60 is enabling legislation that would allow the creation of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency; however, inadequate details have been provided in the bill concerning key elements of the proposed Agency, especially with respect to financing. The Committee was told that a long-term corporate business plan would be tabled in each House of Parliament as soon as possible after the Agency is established. However, this timing is unacceptable. The Committee had requested that a business plan be provided to it; nevertheless, the documentation subsequently provided reflected information already contained in the 1997-98 Estimates of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, and provided no additional details. Moreover, the Canadian Federation of Agriculture also expressed concern about the lack of a business plan with costs and revenue projections, and urged industry consultations in the formulation of the proposed Agency`s business plan and budget. Given that the Committee is passing the bill without the benefit of the business plan, we recommend that the proposed Agency`s President and Executive Vice-President appear before the Committee once the business plan has been tabled, in order to provide answers to outstanding questions.

Consultations are important for industry representatives, since they would be stakeholders in the proposed Agency and would be required to pay user fees. The issue of cost recovery is of critical importance to agricultural producers and processors. Certainly, the extent to which our producers and processors will have to incur such costs will affect their international competitiveness. This remains a concern of the Committee despite the fact that we were informed that no new cost recovery initiatives would occur until the year 2000. Moreover, the Committee notes that no assessment of the total cost recovery moneys paid by the agricultural sector has occurred. In the absence of such an analysis, it is difficult to ensure that our producers and processors are not being placed at a competitive disadvantage in the global marketplace. The Committee recommends that such an analysis be undertaken as soon as possible.

Finally, concerns were raised about accountability. The proposed Agency would be a new structure, and this fact creates anxiety for some. Moreover, while the bill specifies the maximum size of the proposed Advisory Board and notes that the proposed Board would advise the Minister on any matter within the responsibilities of the proposed Agency, the bill is silent on key issues. In particular, it would appear that there would be no requirement that the proposed Board be representative, and greater details on its specific mandate would have been helpful. While such information may be included in regulations, the Committee notes that draft versions of these have not been provided. The Committee recommends clarity on these issues, and the release of draft regulations, as soon as possible.

Respectfully submitted,

LEONARD J. GUSTAFSON

Chairman