Good morning everyone.
I'm very pleased to be here with you today and to take part in such an important session. I would like to thank Joseph Neu of Electro-Federation Canada for inviting me to speak here today about counterfeit goods and Intellectual Property crime.
I noted that your conference theme is 'promoting innovation'. Innovation is important to governments as well, and we must always strive to use innovative solutions to deal with complex problems. Innovation may be in the form of new technology that will help us to deal more efficiently and effectively with a given problem or challenge. Or it may be in the form of forward-looking and proactive thinking when we are faced with an emerging problem, and we want to be one step ahead in addressing it.
I also noted that you will be discussing and hearing about a range of issues -- from trade between Canada and the U.S. and the importance of open, harmonized borders -- to training and education to address the need for skilled labour in the trades careers -- to the issue of counterfeit electrical products and the need to clamp down on those who distribute illegal products.
On this last issue, I have come to recognize that this type of Intellectual Property crime can be wide-ranging -- including everything from phony electrical goods, to pirated films and CDs, to counterfeit pharmaceuticals.
Obviously, this is a complex and multi-faceted issue. Although exact figures are difficult to determine, both Interpol and the World Intellectual Property Organization now estimate that five to seven per cent of global trade now involves counterfeit goods.
I take a personal interest in this issue for several reasons.
The Canadian Standards Association is in my riding, and they've made me very aware of their concerns about copyright and trade mark infringement of the CSA certification mark. I am aware that Underwriters Laboratories (UL) and Underwriters Laboratories of Canada (ULC) marks are also being counterfeited. When Canadians see a product with the CSA or UL mark, they expect the manufacturer has earned the right to display that certification. If it hasn't, and that so-called certified product turns out to be unsafe or dangerous, Canadians and their families are at risk.
Not only do such products threaten public health and safety,
they also undermine consumer confidence.
In the course of my work as Parliamentary Secretary for the Minister of Public
Safety and Emergency Preparedness, I've met with officials from the RCMP,
and officials at the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) to learn more about
IP crime.
It is clear to me and to the Government of Canada, that the passage of counterfeit goods over our borders, not only undermines legitimate businesses, but also jeopardizes our trading relationships. Trade in counterfeit goods undermines our economy.
It strengthens the activities of organized crime groups, who have been shown to be increasingly involved in this type of crime.
And most importantly and tragically, it can lead to the illness or death of unsuspecting consumers.
But this does not have to happen. And that is why today, I am here to talk with you about the implications of IP crime for public safety, and what my department, Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Canada (PSEPC), is doing to combat the problem.
What the Government of Canada and PSEPC are doing
The Government of Canada takes the issue of counterfeit goods very seriously, and we're working on several fronts to deal with the problem. Here in Canada, an Interdepartmental Working Group on Intellectual Property and Enforcement is developing a national strategy that addresses prevention, detection, enforcement and public awareness.
Let me touch on these issues in more detail, starting with prevention.
Budget 2005 allocated $433 million in new funding for the CBSA as part of a $1 billion investment in public safety and security issues. A portion of these funds has been allocated for the hiring of an additional 270 border services officers over the next five years. As part of this $433 million investment, we will also put more than $70 million into technology to improve border management and operations.
The Government of Canada committed $300 million in the last budget to strengthen marine security across the country. We already had Marine Security Operation Centers (MSOCs) on the east and west coasts, but we needed to fill a gap in central Canada. And this past summer, led by the RCMP, we rolled out an interim Center for the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway region. We continue to work on the longer-term solution.
Ultimately, the Center will enhance our ability to identify suspicious activities
that may pose security threats or warrant criminal investigation. As such,
the new MSOC will strengthen our commitment to intelligence-based policing
that should inform targeted and coordinated actions when it comes to dealing
with counterfeit goods. It will also help us to leverage information to identify
other threats to public safety and security.
That said, we are also looking at ways to strengthen enforcement. For both technical and legal reasons, it's often a challenge to prosecute the importers of seized counterfeit goods. The Interdepartmental Working Group, which includes International Trade Canada, Industry Canada, Justice Canada, Heritage Canada, Health Canada and the PSEP portfolio (RCMP, CBSA and the Department) has a sub-group examining this issue now.
Each of the departments I've listed and their corresponding pieces of legislation are crucial to the process. Just as the counterfeit goods issue is a multi-faceted one, so are the legislative pieces that need to be amended in order to properly tackle the overarching issue of IP theft.
For example, Industry Canada is responsible for the Trademark Act, and Heritage Canada oversees the Copyright Act. Moreover, the Department of International Trade has a responsibility to ensure that we respect our trade agreements with other countries.
So as you can see, work on the legislative front requires that we coordinate our efforts between departments and agencies, and that is exactly what we're doing through the Interdepartmental Working Group.
Moving forward - although I cannot predict what will happen over the next few days, much less the next few weeks here in Ottawa - you can be assured that the Deputy Prime Minister and I will be working with other Ministers to implement the legislative and regulatory changes needed to close the gaps that exist and enhance the legal regime to prevent trade in counterfeit goods. Ideally, this would happen early in the New Year.
In the meantime, much activity is taking place. CBSA, for example, is now analyzing IP programs in the European Union and the United States to see what can be gleaned from them.
We're also involving the private sector in this process. Last June, for example,
PSEPC, the RCMP and CBSA looked at enforcement issues with the Canadian Anti-Counterfeiting
Network-a coalition of individuals, businesses and associations. The Network
is taking its own look at possible legislative reforms and best practices
from other countries, and we expect to hear from them shortly.
This collaboration recognizes the role that rights holders play in the protection
of their rights and the protection of the consumer. This approach also recognizes
that public/private partnerships are important in dealing with intellectual
property crime, and that it takes a coordinated effort among all stakeholders,
including the consumer, to combat IP theft.
Last month, I attended a joint Health-Canada/RCMP conference to specifically address the threat posed by counterfeit pharmaceuticals in Canada. The goal of the conference was to share information with stakeholders on the scope of this issue, and to provide a forum for better collaboration and a more integrated response to the problem. It was a successful conference, and we all took away a better understanding of the issue and clearer objectives for tackling it.
International collaboration
And obviously, the very nature of Intellectual Property crime demands that
we collaborate with our international partners, and especially our American
neighbours. The Interdepartmental Working Group continues to work closely
with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, particularly Immigration and
Customs Enforcement.
Similarly, the RCMP collaborates with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the FBI in dealing with counterfeit products such as pharmaceuticals, and with Interpol in finding international solutions relating to IP crime.
In August, for example, we compared notes with the U.S. on our respective IP rights enforcement activities, and looked at ways to enhance collaboration. U.S. officials presented a work plan that proposed the development and sharing of best practices and enforcement guidelines. The Government of Canada and Mexico have agreed to provide feedback on these proposals this fall. This work is expected to impact on the development of our own IP rights enforcement model.
We also work at the multilateral level to meet our global obligations. A result of this is the North American Security and Prosperity Partnership for a "Fake Free North America."
Conclusion
As you can see, the PSEP portfolio takes Intellectual Property crime very
seriously. As I mentioned, we're working on the problem with other departments
such as Industry Canada, Heritage Canada, Health Canada and the Department
of International Trade, as well as with our domestic and international partners.
In the process we're strengthening our approach to both prevention and enforcement.
I encourage you to continue to raise these kinds of issues with us, and I can assure you that I will do my best to continue to push this issue as far forward as I can to make sure we are combating the problem of counterfeit goods as effectively as possible.
I would be happy now to answer your questions.
Thank you. Merci.