Parliamentary committee votes to investigate

A parliamentary committee made up of 11 parliamentarians from all political parties has voted to conduct a more open and transparent probe into the Maple Leaf Foods tainted meat tragedy of last summer, reported the Toronto Star. The tragedy left at least 20 people dead and many ill. The aim of the committee is to look at food safety across Canada as a whole and to examine more closely the details of the outbreak from last summer. Last month, the prime minister announced that he had appointed Sheila Weatherill, former president and CEO of Edmonton’s Capital Health Region, as the independent investigator into the tragedy. Weatherill expects to file her report by this summer and will not comment until it is complete. Her investigation will have no power to subpoena witnesses. The parliamentary committee on the other hand will have the authority to call witnesses to testify and produce documents. Some have hailed this committee as being a welcome move.