News Release

1999-103
August 10, 1999

Ministers announce creation of Community Liaison Committee

WINNIPEG – Health Minister Allan Rock and Agriculture and Agri-Food Minister Lyle Vanclief today announced their intention to create a permanent Community Liaison Committee to help ensure full and open communication on safety issues and procedures related to the Canadian Science Centre for Human and Animal Health.

Community involvement and communications have been a priority in the development, construction and opening of the Science Centre and remain of paramount importance. A July 29 report by independent experts, while endorsing the Science Centre's safety and operating procedures, further underscored the importance of keeping the community informed on an ongoing basis so that an atmosphere of trust and good faith is maintained.

"Full and open two-way communication is vital to ensure that the community has confidence in the safety of this world-class facility," Mr. Rock said. "The establishment of the new committee will provide a permanent and regular liaison between the community of Winnipeg and the Science Centre, as well as an ongoing forum for public input."

"This is an important, additional step in ensuring that the public is informed about the activities around the Science Centre and that the community is provided with opportunities for ongoing open dialogue," Mr. Vanclief said.

During the coming weeks, officials from Health Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) will meet with representatives of the City of Winnipeg, Manitoba Health, Manitoba Environment, neighbourhood groups, as well as interested citizens, to discuss the specific nature of the proposed committee, to determine the best process to be put in place in consulting with the public, and to identify issues to be addressed.

Further details on how citizens can become involved in this process will be announced in the coming weeks and will be outlined on both Health Canada's and the CFIA's Web sites.

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