Harper put ideology ahead of health

[ReeferMadness]

I wonder how long it will take before the mess that Harper made is finally cleaned up. The latest government disaster is that under the Conservatives, Health Canada essentially became nothing more than a rubber stamp when it comes to its mandate to ensure that vitamins and other health supplements are safe.

Michael Kruse, chairman of the advocacy group Bad Science Watch, said that by pushing natural health products through the approvals process, Health Canada is failing Canadian consumers.

"I found often that the Natural Health Products Directorate seemed to be an advocate for the manufacturer," said Assinewe, who retired because of budget cuts in 2013.

The new proposals were implemented in early 2013. Since then, Health Canada has approved more than 90 per cent of applications for natural health products.

At the same time, Health Canada has decided not to take action on independent evidence that shows problems with contamination and adulteration of herbal supplements.

Trudeau should call a public inquiry into this mess. I'm betting that Conservative ideology, which turned government watchdogs into industry cheerleaders, is what's behind this mess.

Canadians need to think long and hard before ever giving the keys to 24 Sussex back to a bunch of hillbilly ideologues.

Edited November 12, 2015 by ReeferMadness

[ToadBrother]

I wonder how long it will take before the mess that Harper made is finally cleaned up. The latest government disaster is that under the Conservatives, Health Canada essentially became nothing more than a rubber stamp when it comes to its mandate to ensure that vitamins and other health supplements are safe.

Probably because of the fruitcake former MP in my old riding. James Lunney was a big advocate of quackery.

[Topaz]

Perhaps they weren't doing much with Health, because on the news it was reveal they were giving billions and billions to the gas and oil companies. No wonder Canada had so many deficits.

[ReeferMadness]

There's an old saying that the right wing consists of people who believe that governments can't do anything properly and vote for parties that will prove them right. It certainly turned out to he the case with this bunch. I wonder how many more unpleasant surprises await.

[WestCanMan]

No difference between the new snake oil and the crap that big pharm has been pushing for the last fifty years. Most of the health problems that Canadians face could be cured by eating a few salads and getting off the couch but everyone wants a pill.

[ToadBrother]

No difference between the new snake oil and the crap that big pharm has been pushing for the last fifty years. Most of the health problems that Canadians face could be cured by eating a few salads and getting off the couch but everyone wants a pill.

You be sure to tell that to a cancer patient or someone suffering from MRSA.

[August1991]

I wonder how long it will take before the mess that Harper made is finally cleaned up.

Among our various past federal PMs, Harper is exceptional because he never took a cent, and he made sure that anyone in his cabinet didn't either.

With Harper, there were no brown envelopes, and no golf courses. Harper ran a tight, honest ship. Canada, under Harper, was Scandinavian/Lutheran in its governance. Our federal government was Swedish in style.

Let's see what happens with this new crew.

Edited November 13, 2015 by August1991

[ToadBrother]

Among our various past federal PMs, Harper is exceptional because he never took a cent, and he made sure that anyone in his cabinet didn't either.

With Harper, there were no brown envelopes, and no golf courses. Harper ran a tight, honest ship. Canada, under Harper, was Scandinavian/Lutheran in its governance. Our federal government was Swedish in style.

Let's see what happens with this new crew.

Harper's PMO on the other hand...

[August1991]

Harper's PMO on the other hand...

Did anyone in Harper's PMO take any money from any taxpayer?

Did anyone in Harper's cabinet ask for any entitlement?

======

Among our federal governments, the Harper cabinet is exceptional. It was largely honest. No brown envelopes, no resignations. If anything, Harper started the Charbonneau Commission.

As I say, let's see with this new crew.

[August1991]

For the record, I see Trudeau Jnr as more a Gérald Tremblay than a Denis Coderre (how he's perceived in English-Canada). In any case, he's not his Dad and he's no Jean Drapeau.

I reckon that, like Tremblay, Trudeau Jnr will admit at some point to someone on tape that "I suspected it all along" or "that's what it's all about, you know".

[CITIZEN_2015]

Harper put his backward ideology ahead of everything. Ideology ahead of democracy (bill C-51), ideology ahead of safety of citizens (bill C-36). ideology ahead of science (abolishing long form census) ...and many other examples. Trudeau will make as promised evidence-based decisions and he has reversed already one of the above. I hope he acts on other two soon.

Edited November 13, 2015 by CITIZEN_2015

[poochy]

So wait, they same people who on this forum advocate for marijuana in part because of its natural health benefits, the people who deride the former government for not legalizing it are now worried that they allowed other natural health products to be approved.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAH

Im not allowed to properly describe why some of you are so obtuse.

[Smeelious]

Among our various past federal PMs, Harper is exceptional because he never took a cent, and he made sure that anyone in his cabinet didn't either.

With Harper, there were no brown envelopes, and no golf courses. Harper ran a tight, honest ship. Canada, under Harper, was Scandinavian/Lutheran in its governance. Our federal government was Swedish in style.

Let's see what happens with this new crew.

Ridings that elected Conservative members of Parliament in 2011 received, on average, 48 per cent more money from the $150-million Community Infrastructure Improvement Fund than ridings that elected opposition MPs, a Globe tally of more than 1,600 projects across Canada shows.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/federal-infrastructure-fund-spending-favoured-conservative-ridings/article25172781/

[ToadBrother]

So wait, they same people who on this forum advocate for marijuana in part because of its natural health benefits, the people who deride the former government for not legalizing it are now worried that they allowed other natural health products to be approved.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAH

Im not allowed to properly describe why some of you are so obtuse.

I don't argue for marijuana because of its health benefits, because other than its sedative (depressant) effects and some ability to reduce nausea, it really doesn't have any, and it also can potentially degrade cognitive function in adolescents, not to mention that smoking anything is bad for your lungs.

I advocate for legalization because I simply do not think the government has any right to tell adults what to do with their own bodies, and marijuana, when compared with a legal drug like alcohol, or heck, a three cheeseburger a day diet, isn't really any worse.

[ToadBrother]

Did anyone in Harper's PMO take any money from any taxpayer?

Did anyone in Harper's cabinet ask for any entitlement?

======

Among our federal governments, the Harper cabinet is exceptional. It was largely honest. No brown envelopes, no resignations. If anything, Harper started the Charbonneau Commission.

As I say, let's see with this new crew.

I won't bring up gazebos. But yeah, a member of Harper's PMO bribed a sitting Senator, and only got off on that one because the Crown decided Duffy was the principle evil and needed Wright as a witness more than as an accused.

But hey, I get it, minimizing your party's sins and maximizing a previous party's sins is the single most important about being a partisan.

[SpankyMcFarland]

Harper kept such a tight hold on this ship of state, our parliament lost consciousness. A great grey cloud has lifted.

Edited November 13, 2015 by SpankyMcFarland

[Argus]

I wonder how long it will take before the mess that Harper made is finally cleaned up. The latest government disaster is that under the Conservatives, Health Canada essentially became nothing more than a rubber stamp when it comes to its mandate to ensure that vitamins and other health supplements are safe.

Gee. Can you list the many changes made to government policy on this issue from the previous government?

<tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock> <sound of crickets>

Health Canada has always had far less onerous regulations with regard to supplements and the like than they do about actual drugs. Always.

[ReeferMadness]

Among our various past federal PMs, Harper is exceptional because he never took a cent, and he made sure that anyone in his cabinet didn't either. With Harper, there were no brown envelopes, and no golf courses. Harper ran a tight, honest ship.

Too soon to tell. It took years for the public to learn of Mulroney's brown envelopes. Harper ran one of the most secretive administrations in Canadian history so time will tell.

Canada, under Harper, was Scandinavian/Lutheran in its governance. Our federal government was Swedish in style.

You mean except for the part where the Swedes actually govern on behalf of the public instead of on behalf of corporate interests?

Frankly, Health Canada dropping the ball and compromising the health of citizens is much more offensive to me than Adscam. it would take only a few hundred people getting sick to cost our healthcare system more than Adscam cost Canada. And cheating on elections is much more offensive than whatever Chretien did with respect to his golf course. And I won't even start on the myriad of ways Harper tanked our international reputation.

But we're trending off topic here. This thread is about how the Harper Conservatives let their ideology get in the way of Health Canada protecting the health of Canadians. Cuz corporate profits and the GDP are everything. I see you have nothing to say about that.

[ReeferMadness]

Gee. Can you list the many changes made to government policy on this issue from the previous government?

Oh, jeez. You didn't even bother to read the link did you? Because if you had, you would have noticed that before the Conservatives got involved, most of the products didn't get approved.

In the early days of the directorate, Health Canada statistics show it was difficult to get products approved. Bureaucrats rejected more than half of the applications they received.

Valerie Assinewe, a former scientific evaluator and head of monograph development with Health Canada's Natural Health Products Directorate, said many applicants could not provide the evidence Health Canada required, and that bureaucrats engaged in lengthy negotiations to help manufacturers get their products approved and into stores.

So, bring back the sound of those crickets now.

[overthere]

You mean except for the part where the Swedes actually govern on behalf of the public instead of on behalf of corporate interests?

You are apparently unaware of how the planet actually functions.

Sweden is one of the economic success stories, largely due to their shift towards the kind of cooperative governance that countries like Germany, Netherlands, Denmark Japan etc enjoy.

They all have this in common: the government works closely with corporations and closely with unions to ensure a coherent economci policy that enhances both profits and worker prosperity. They do not exist in isolation, all three must row together- and they do.

As long as we have your 'we vs them' mentality, Canada will not achieve this type of progress.

hth.

[Argus]

Oh, jeez. You didn't even bother to read the link did you? Because if you had, you would have noticed that before the Conservatives got involved, most of the products didn't get approved.

"The rules were established in 2004 in response to concerns about the potential dangers of unregulated products and to consumer demand for greater choice."

So the rules were established under the Liberals. So maybe you should complain to them. All the Conservatives did was speed up the approval process.

And by the way, it doesn't say things weren't approved before the Tories got involved. It just says it took longer.

[ReeferMadness]

"The rules were established in 2004 in response to concerns about the potential dangers of unregulated products and to consumer demand for greater choice."

So the rules were established under the Liberals. So maybe you should complain to them. All the Conservatives did was speed up the approval process.

And by the way, it doesn't say things weren't approved before the Tories got involved. It just says it took longer.

Clearly, you need some help reading this. Before the Conservatives monkeyed with the rules, over half the products were rejected.

Here's how it was under the Liberals.

The rules were established in 2004 in response to concerns about the potential dangers of unregulated products and to consumer demand for greater choice.

In the early days of the directorate, Health Canada statistics show it was difficult to get products approved. Bureaucrats rejected more than half of the applications they received.

Here is what the Conservatives did.

Lengthy reviews created a backlog, and in the fall of 2012 Health Canada went on a cross-country "road show" to consult with the industry.

Health Canada statistics show that it now approves more than 90 per cent of applications to sell new natural health products. And under updated rules, products can be approved in as little as 10 days.

And here are the results

One document says that 40 per cent of complaints to inspectors responsible for enforcing the regulations were about natural health products, and that 40 per cent of those were about poor quality of the products. Common complaints included contamination, purposeful adulteration, incorrect strength and incorrect identity, the document says.

Even so, Health Canada proposed a "new approach" to approving natural health products that would be "quicker and clearer," and which left it up to manufacturers to ensure quality.

Summary: Health Canada used to approve less than half of the products. The Conservatives defunded Health Canada and made it change the rules so that now over 90% of the products are approved in as little as 10 days.

Edited November 13, 2015 by ReeferMadness

[ReeferMadness]

You are apparently unaware of how the planet actually functions.

Sweden is one of the economic success stories, largely due to their shift towards the kind of cooperative governance that countries like Germany, Netherlands, Denmark Japan etc enjoy.

They all have this in common: the government works closely with corporations and closely with unions to ensure a coherent economci policy that enhances both profits and worker prosperity. They do not exist in isolation, all three must row together- and they do.

As long as we have your 'we vs them' mentality, Canada will not achieve this type of progress.

hth.

Oh, thank you for telling me how the planet functions. Please tell me more about Corporate responsibility - I want to know!

Sure, these pharmaceutical companies were selling products with labels that lied about the contents but that's just one bad apple example. Surely, there are shining examples of how corporations police themselves. Like Volkswagen and emissions control. Or Barrick Gold's commitment to the environment. Or British Petroleum's commitment to safe and clean deepwater drilling. How about Exxon's commitment to truth about the environmental impact of their products? Or Enron's high standards of honesty? And let's not forget SNC Lavalin's example of corporate integrity. Or almost any tobacco company and their commitment to full disclosure about the safety of their products. Hey, I haven't even scratched the surface yet.

You don't get prosperity by allowing corporations to police themselves - you get dishonesty. Government watchdogs should not be in the business of promoting the industry they are regulating. And testing must be independent to be believable.

[69cat]

Should change title to "federal gov put ideology ahead..."

This article goes back to cases in 1998, and naturally there would be many more issues before then, but sure, lets make it sound like this is only something that has ever occurred in the last 10 years.

http://rabble.ca/news/2015/07/health-canadas-lack-rigorous-safety-review-real-outrage

Watching news feeds now about Paris terror attacks.

[jacee]

Agreed.

"Canadians choose health care over political ideology?"

Expunge Harper. ?

I wonder how long it will take before the mess that Harper made is finally cleaned up. The latest government disaster is that under the Conservatives, Health Canada essentially became nothing more than a rubber stamp when it comes to its mandate to ensure that vitamins and other health supplements are safe.

Ya he didn't like that science stuff.

And he's gone. ?

Trudeau should call a public inquiry into this mess.

Nah.

Hire back the scientists and let them do their work.

And give the bureaucracy directive to prioritize our

I'm betting that Conservative ideology, which turned government watchdogs into industry cheerleaders, is what's behind this mess.

Yup.

Gone.

?

Edited November 14, 2015 by jacee