Agriculture committee  As I think we've stated, there are certainly ways in which this bill could be improved. As it is currently written, there are challenges with it that mean we would not be able to support it.

Agriculture committee  No, we do not have polling data. We don't have that done.

Agriculture committee  Certainly not. No.

Agriculture committee  No, I think that would be incorrect. We have a very diverse membership. Obviously, we have members serving the companion animal community as well as those serving the food animal community. I think we would be close to getting as many opinions as we have members. Ultimately, what I can attest to is that our members have a unified desire to see animal welfare improvements, regardless of the species, without bias, and that—

Agriculture committee  No, not to my knowledge. That has not occurred.

Agriculture committee  I believe it would. I would also reiterate that Canada's health of animals regulations take into account the farm of origin, the transport and the arrival at destination. That is covered within our own framework. Knowing colleagues in Japan, I would suggest that this sounds quite legitimate.

Agriculture committee  Thank you. Yes, there were concerns regarding what happens to the high-value animals that are already in the supply chain. We may very well see a reduced animal welfare standard for those animals. The other concern CVMA has is that eliminating Canadian horses—which I think we have established have a very high standard of welfare—from this supply chain may ultimately, potentially, push the supply of these horses into domains that do not have standards as high as Canada's.

Agriculture committee  As it's written, we see that it's problematic in that it's choosing one type of horse and is not necessarily based on animal welfare. The purpose of this bill is based on the idea that it is inhumane to ship horses by air for export. That's simply not something that we've seen the data support.

Agriculture committee  I believe it's part of the picture. There's not a long transport after a long trip, so that is very helpful. The conditions that have been described and shared with us regarding the Japanese experience would be, I think, very equivalent to, or better than, what we're seeing here on Canadian soil.

Agriculture committee  Basically, being well fed and having spacious pens and the ability to move. It's satisfying the five freedoms of animal welfare. I think that's the basis of the judgment that we don't believe there's a decline in care upon arrival in Japan.

Agriculture committee  No, but I believe Jennifer Woods would be able to offer testimony or offer additional input to that, as she has travelled on these trips and witnessed the space.

Agriculture committee  I'm here to state the official position of the Canadian Veterinary Medical Association that we cannot support this bill as written in its current form.

Agriculture committee  As stated in my testimony, we have done an evidence-based review and we have consulted with subject matter experts, including those on our animal welfare committee, to form this opinion.

Agriculture committee  I believe there's a little confusion regarding the position statement development and our testimony here today. The position statement development that you have quoted from our website very much involves stakeholders on a regular basis, including membership. We have worked on this testimony here today exclusively through subject matter experts, our animal welfare committee and those with first-hand experience—including me—in visiting the feed yards in Alberta and seeing that part of the process.

Agriculture committee  Thank you, Mr. Chair. I think the concerns we've heard are often raised based on emotion and on the high value of a horse in our society. I think those concerns are fair and well understood, speaking especially as someone who practices with horses on a daily basis. With that said, I do not believe that allows us to have our judgment of the facts to be skewed based on emotion.