It gives me great pleasure to meet the people who are contributing to one of the most dynamic and promising sectors of our economy, and I thank the Association for giving me the opportunity to be here.

Not only have you changed the face of Laval, but you are also helping to breathe new life into the Quebec economy and to open a window on the future.

As Minister for International Trade, I am responsible for seeking out new markets for our products. This task is all the more enjoyable -- and a far sight easier, I might add - when we are working with as innovative and competitive a group of industries as yours.

I can assure you that Canada's biotechnology industry enjoys a solid reputation the world over. And I know that you've only begun to show us - and the world - what you have in store. You are part of a young and rapidly growing industry that has a brilliant future ahead of it.

But in order to win, you've got to fight. And if the new global economy, with its premium on knowledge and innovation, offers exciting opportunities especially for the biotechnology industries, it also imposes some fierce competition.

At a time when national borders are blurring, when industries are forming alliances and when new transcontinental networks are being forged, it is more important than ever to join forces and develop new partnerships - between industrial sectors, between regions and between the private sector and government.

Above all, I want you to know that you can count on me and the Government of Canada to help you continue to grow and flourish, here and throughout the world. We want to be your partner.

Indeed, the recently announced budget confirms our willingness to support our high-tech industries. In addition to reducing personal income tax rates and thus making Canada a more attractive place for workers in knowledge-based sectors, the budget includes a number of measures directly aimed at making the Canadian economy more competitive internationally.

I believe that the budget tabled by my colleague Paul Martin will go down in history as one of the key instruments in helping Canada successfully join the new economy. But the measures announced last week are not the result of a sudden flash of inspiration on the part of the Finance Minister. Rather, they are the most recent expression of a step-by-step plan we have been following since 1993 to restore our fiscal health and make government work for those who produce, who create, who innovate and who put their expertise and initiative to work for the public good and Canada's overall prosperity.

I am firmly convinced that the key to bringing our economy into the global mainstream is to channel our resources, our energies and our talents.

In the sector that concerns you, last week's budget provides for the investment of:

• $900 million over five years to establish and maintain 2000 new university research chairs in Canada;

• $900 million in additional funding for the Canada Foundation for Innovation, bringing the government's total investment to $1.9 billion;

• $160 million in Genome Canada to advance the study of genes and biotechnology, especially as they apply to priority fields such as health; and

• $90 million over the next three years for federal departments and agencies that regulate biotechnology products and processes.

We will also be increasing from $500 to $3000 the partial tax exemption for income from scholarships and research fellowships.

Intellectual property and patenting higher life forms

But giving the biotechnology sector a boost is not just a matter of money or regulations.

Your field of endeavour is life itself. And the health of your industry can influence the health of thousands of Canadians.

What's more, some of the areas you are exploring for the first time involve fundamental social values and ethical issues. For instance, exploring the possibility of patenting higher forms of life gives rise to some thorny questions.

Who owns life forms? What does informed consent mean? What shape should a policy on human reproduction take? Many similar questions, each with its own social, moral and even religious ramifications, confront not only our scientists but society as a whole and its elected representatives.

And as science and technology progress, we are discovering new grey areas in our legislation. A case in point: for the past 20-odd years, Canada has been issuing patents on genes and single-cell organisms, and yet our Patent Act scarcely broaches the question of patenting higher forms of life.

In the case of new plant varieties, what we have in Canada is a system separate from the patent system. It comes under the Plant Breeders' Rights Act. The Act provides for the registration of plant varieties and the assignment of exclusive rights concerning the sale and use of plant propagation material, if these plant varieties meet the following criteria: they must be new, stable, distinguishable and homogenous.

But the genetic material underlying the plant varieties specified by the Act is not itself protected. This, as you will agree, is no mere detail!

For obvious reasons, the biotechnology industry is in favour of the patentability - if I may use that barbarism - of higher life forms. The Government of Canada is sensitive to your position.

But here, as in other areas, we must also act in step with the international community. Although there is currently no international obligation to issue patents on higher life forms, Canada is reviewing a wide range of policy options as part of its duty to examine the various international obligations relating to the protection of life forms.

It's all well and good for the World Trade Organization Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights to address the patentability of higher life forms, but the fact remains that member countries have the obligation to undertake - and have indeed undertaken - a process to review the exceptions specified in order to allow plants, animals and the biological processes essential to their production to be excluded from patentability.

I do not claim to offer a fresh new perspective on these questions, but as a society speeding down the biotechnology highway, it is high time that we discuss them as openly as possible. The concerns raised by several new advances, as I said earlier, extend well beyond the scientific community.

That is why, through the National Biotechnology Advisory Committee, and in accordance with the Canadian Biotechnology Strategy, the Government of Canada plans to consult the population on such issues as patentability of higher forms of life.

The aim of this exercise is to succeed in developing a policy on intellectual property that adequately reflects Canadian values, responds to industry needs and takes into account the legitimate concerns of our fellow citizens.

The need to harmonize international regulations

Public safety requirements with respect to food, health and the management of risks associated with research and development are such that the various international rules need to be harmonized, if only to a minimum degree. Such harmonization is also necessary when it comes to the policy on patents.

This harmonization is multifaceted. We must always bear in mind, for instance, that our prosperity depends to a great extent on our international trade. In Canada, trade accounts for one in three jobs. Our relations with our trading partners must therefore be preserved and constantly improved if we want Canadian goods and services to circulate freely throughout the world.

The WTO agreements constitute the best vehicle for managing trade relations with our partners and harmonizing the various rules. In addition, Canada has lots of other ways of enhancing its trade and co-ordinating the rules - bilateral agreements, for example, as well as participation in various international forums.

We also sit on numerous international committees charged with co-ordinating scientific and trade standards and practices within, for example, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation [APEC] forum, where we examine all aspects of the APEC food system.

Biotechnology, including the biopharmaceutical sector, is also part of the international agenda. Today, for example, we are examining the possibility of co-operation with our main trading partners, namely the United States, the European Union and Japan.

The discussions last November between the European Union and Canada on the approval process for genetically modified organisms [GMOs] saw us make serious headway, and we agreed on a work program spread over 12 months that will allow us to continue, if not complete, this exchange of views.

Scientific exchanges between experts from France's Institut National de la recherche agronomique [INRA] and those at Agriculture Canada are also heating up, especially with regard to GMOs.

Canada and its bio-industries

The Canadian government understands and shares the concerns of consumers and environmental protection groups. We live in a world where traditional parameters do not always apply. In today's world, value added must be viewed within a context which incorporates such dimensions as quality of life and safety.

What's more, the Canadian government cannot espouse positions whose sole aim is to protect domestic producers against their foreign competitors. We can - and we must - guard against certain dangers and abuses of free competition. Our caution, however, must not be used to camouflage protectionist measures.

In the coming years, we will need to show extraordinary ingenuity, openness and wisdom to achieve a just and ideal balance between our commercial interests and our social values, between scientific innovation and the preservation of our moral principles.

As I've already said, you can count on me to defend your interests. And I, in turn, know that I can count on you to help us chart a course through these tricky waters.

Thank you.

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Last Updated: 2006-10-30	Top of Page	Important Notices