By unanimous consent, the Committee reverted to the consideration of the amendment of Charlie Angus previously stood which read as follows: That Bill C-27 be amended by adding before line 19 on page 32 the following new clause:“71.1 (1) Subsections 10(1) and (2) of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency Act are replaced by the following:
10. (1) The Minister shall appoint an advisory board of not more than twelve members representing all major regions of Canada. A member representing each of the following organizations shall be appointed from a list of candidates provided by those organizations: the National Farmers Union,
the Canadian Federation of Agriculture,
the Union des Producteurs Agricoles, the Canadian Organic Growers Association, the
Public Service Alliance of Canada
and the Consumers' Association of Canada.
(2) The standing committee of the House of Commons that normally considers matters related to agriculture shall assess all candidates for appointment to the advisory board and make recommendations to the Minister on the eligibility and qualifications of those candidates.
(2.1) The members of the advisory board hold office during pleasure for a term not exceeding three years, which term may be renewed for one or more further terms.
(2.2) The advisory board shall advise the Minister on any matter within the responsibilities of the Agency and, in particular, carry out the following functions:
(a) provide oversight and review of all decisions made by the Agency under the Canadian Food Inspection Agency Enforcement Act and any other Agency-related Act that have been appealed under any of those Acts by an affected party;
(b) engage third-party audit services to ensure that the powers exercised by the Agency under the Canadian Food Inspection Agency Enforcement Act have been carried out in an appropriate manner;
(c) review third-party audit reports and provide recommendations to the Agency in relation to matters discussed in those reports;
(d) provide policy direction to the Agency, taking into account the challenges facing the food industry; and
(e) provide a forum for the food industry and government to discuss food safety, quality and traceability and new industry initiatives in respect of animal and plant health in a fair and equitable manner.
(2) Subsection 10(7) of the Act is replaced by the following:
(7) The advisory board shall meet at least once every three months at the time and place determined by the Chairperson.
(8) In this section, “Agency-related Act” has the same meaning as in section 2 of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency Enforcement Act.”