House of Commons Debates VOLUME 148 Ï NUMBER 319 Ï 1st SESSION Ï 42nd PARLIAMENT OFFICIAL REPORT (HANSARD) Monday, September 17, 2018 Speaker: The Honourable Geoff Regan CONTENTS (Table of Contents appears at back of this issue.) 21361 HOUSE OF COMMONS Monday, September 17, 2018 The House met at 11 a.m. As for Bill S-234, which is awaiting debate at second reading, it is now without an eligible sponsor. The principle expressed at pages 558 and 1,138 of House of Commons Procedure and Practice, third edition, provides that bills remain on the order of precedence since Prayer they are in the possession of the House, and that only the House can take a further decision on them. If no action is taken by the House at Ï (1100) the appropriate time, this item will be dropped from the Order Paper, pursuant to Standing Order 94(2)(c). [Translation] VACANCIES I thank members for their attention. OUTREMONT AND BURNABY SOUTH The Speaker: It is my duty to inform the House that vacancies *** have occurred in the representation, namely: Mr. Thomas Mulcair, member for the electoral district of Outremont, by resignation CHILD HEALTH PROTECTION ACT effective Friday, August 3. [English] Mr. Doug Eyolfson (Charleswood—St. James—Assiniboia— Headingley, Lib.) moved that Bill S-228, An Act to amend the Mr. Kennedy Stewart, member for the electoral district of Burnaby Food and Drugs Act (prohibiting food and beverage marketing South, resigned effective Friday, September 14, 2018. directed at children), be read the third time and passed. Pursuant to subsection 25(1)(b) of the Parliament of Canada Act, I have addressed warrants to the Chief Electoral Officer for the issue He said: Mr. Speaker, it is my honour to stand here today as a of writs for the election of members to fill these vacancies. sponsor of Bill S-228, the child health protection act, at its third and final reading in Parliament. PRIVATE MEMBERS' BUSINESS I would like to begin by thanking my fellow colleagues on the Standing Committee on Health for their thoughtful review of the Ï (1105) legislation. It was an honour to work with all of them and I look [Translation] forward to continuing to work together on issues affecting Canadians. BILL S-234 AND MOTION NO. 191 The Speaker: As hon. members know, by virtue of their office, Childhood obesity is an epidemic of such a magnitude that it is a ministers and parliamentary secretaries are not eligible to propose matter of national concern. Today, one in three Canadian children is items for consideration under private members' business. The order either overweight or obese. We know that obesity is linked to chronic of precedence currently includes one motion and one Senate bill conditions and illnesses, such as high cholesterol, high blood standing in the name of members who were recently appointed to the pressure, sleep apnea, type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke and some position of minister or parliamentary secretary: Motion No. 191 and cancers, and its effects are compounded if the onset is premature. Bill S-234, An Act to amend the Parliament of Canada Act (Parliamentary Visual Artist Laureate). [English] During my career as a physician, I noticed more of my patients were overweight or obese and I was seeing instances of heart disease Therefore, in accordance with past practice, and under the and type 2 diabetes in younger and younger people. According to the authority granted to me by Standing Order 94(1), I am ordering World Obesity Federation, if current trends continue, more than 10 that the item in the name of the member for Hamilton West— million adults in Canada will be obese by 2025 and treating health Ancaster—Dundas, Motion No. 191, be withdrawn from the order of problems caused by obesity will cost Canada nearly $34 billion per precedence on the Order Paper. year. 21362 COMMONS DEBATES September 17, 2018 Private Members' Business In its final report presented on January 25, 2016, the World Health With regard to the factors to determine if an advertisement is Organization's Commission on Ending Childhood Obesity found directed at children, we need to consider that the impact of marketing that there is unequivocal evidence that the marketing of unhealthy to children is a result of both exposure to unhealthy food ads through foods and sugar-sweetened beverages has a negative impact on settings and media channels and the power of the marketing childhood obesity. The report recommended that any attempt to techniques used. tackle childhood obesity should include a reduction in the exposure of children to marketing. This bill takes concrete steps to address this Ï (1110) public health issue by eliminating the marketing of unhealthy food and beverages to children. As such, the proposed approach addresses both by considering three primary elements: settings, media channels and advertising During the committee stage of this bill, I introduced two techniques. Settings would include places, events or activities, and consequential amendments to the legislation. The first was to alter could include day cares, schools and children's clubs, as well as the definition of a child from 17 years of age to 13 years of age. children's concerts and festivals, among others. During Health Canada's consultation with stakeholders, it became clear that any regime built on restrictions aimed at older teenagers would be subjected to considerable legal risks associated with a Health Canada would determine certain factors related to the restriction on freedom of expression under the Canadian Charter of settings, such as whether the setting is one where children are Rights and Freedoms. Currently, there is a strong precedent for generally or frequently in attendance, and the nature and purpose of defining a child as under 13 in the context of advertising restrictions the event or activity determining whether unhealthy food advertising in Quebec and the province has withstood a charter challenge that is child-directed. was fully upheld at the Supreme Court of Canada. Under the proposed regulations, marketing to children would be Recognizing there is evidence concerning the vulnerability of prohibited in child-directed settings. Where the audience has both teenagers to marketing, as well as the experience in Quebec where adults and children, the marketing of unhealthy foods would be industry shifted marketing efforts to teenagers when restrictions were restricted only if the advertisement itself is found to have child imposed on younger children, I moved a second amendment that appeal and would be prohibited if the characteristics of the ad, such requires Parliament to conduct a mandatory review of the legislation, as colour, theme and/or language, were clearly directed at children. with a focus on the definition of children within five years of the act coming into force. Through the parliamentary review of the Children are also exposed to advertising through a variety of legislation, the government would also be obliged to report publicly media channels, including digital applications, Internet, television, on compliance with the bill and on progress toward our common films and print. Health Canada is currently exploring the use of goal of healthier children of all ages. This work would ensure that, if factors such as the nature and purpose of the media, whether it was necessary, we will have the data needed to support a broadening of intended or designed for children and whether children constitute a restrictions at a future date. significant portion of the audience when determining whether unhealthy food advertising is child-directed. During this bill's second reading and committee stage, there were also questions regarding the regulations that would be established. Recently, Health Canada released the document, “Restricting With regards to the audience portion, Health Canada is Marketing of Unhealthy Food and Beverages to Children: An considering a prohibition of marketing to children when the Update on Proposed Regulations”. In this document, Health Canada proportion of children in the viewing audience is over 15%. For stated that the new regulations would define “unhealthy” food, set media channels where the proportion of children in the viewing out factors to determine if an advertisement is directed at children audience is less than 15%, the marketing of unhealthy food will be and set out exemptions to the prohibition, such as for children's restricted only if the advertisement is found to have clear child sports sponsorship. appeal. With regards to determining advertising techniques with child appeal, it must be understood that a wide range of powerful There has been much discussion as to what qualifies as unhealthy techniques are used to advertise foods to children. Therefore, Health foods and beverages. As such, Health Canada is considering a model Canada will need to determine whether the design, technique or to define “unhealthy” food as foods having a front-of-package characteristic of the advertisement target will influence or appeal to symbol, as proposed in draft regulations, or exceeding the threshold children. For example, an ad for confectionery treats depicting child- for the nutrient content claims, such as low in sodium and salt, low appealing elements such as cartoon images and/or children's toys in saturated fatty acids and/or low in sugars. The Specific Nutrient would be prohibited. Content Claim Requirements, such as the ones previously listed, are used by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency to quantify food Over the past several