Various MPs said a bill expected to pass Parliament would be effective at naming and shaming Canadian companies importing slave-made goods, according to Blacklock’s Reporter. .“Surely in the 21st century it should be clear we cannot base our prosperity on forced labour and child labour,” Liberal MP and bill co-sponsor John McKay told the House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee..“It was immoral in the 18th century and immoral in the 21st century.”.Bill S-211 would mandate annual reporting by importers with a minimum $40 million in revenues on measures taken to ensure goods are not slave made. Penalties for non-disclosure are $250,000. .Some of the products Bill S-211 will target include China-made cotton apparel, solar panels, and tomato paste. The bill passed the Senate in April and is pending in the House of Commons. .“We can pass all the laws we want and the government can publish all the regulations it wants, but if there’s no enforcement of these laws and regulations, then they are nothing more than ink on paper,” said Conservative MP Michael Chong. .McKay responded by saying Chong was “not going to get any disagreement from me on what the facts appear to be.” He said he hopes the Canadian government will be aggressive under this law. .Bill S-211 would shame corporate leaders in Canada who fail to question offshore suppliers. .“A lot of these people are pretty successful and they don’t want to see their names in the newspaper or online or wherever having failed to comply with this kind of legislation,” said McKay. .One shipment of suspected slave goods was intercepted since the Canadian government issued an advisory against suspicious imports from China. .READ MORE: Few shipments of Chinese slave-made goods intercepted by Canada.“The fact only one shipment out of several billion dollars worth of products that have been banned seems to me to lead to the conclusion that we’re not doing a good job,” said Chong. .The lone shipment of items was intercepted in Quebec in November.
