moved for leave to introduce Bill C-389, An Act to amend the Excise Tax Act (automated external defibrillators).

Mr. Speaker, I am honoured to rise in the House on behalf of the great people of Barrie—Springwater—Oro-Medonte to introduce this bill. I thank my friend and colleague from Lanark—Frontenac—Kingston for being here with me today and for seconding this bill.

Simply put, this legislation seeks to eliminate the application of the GST or HST from the sale of automatic external defibrillators. This would increase the accessibility and affordability of these life-saving devices. According to the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada, as many as 45,000 Canadians experience a sudden cardiac arrest each year, and 80% occur outside of a hospital setting. Defibrillation improves survival rates significantly if delivered in the first few minutes. AEDs, combined with CPR, increase the survival rates to 50% or more.

We know that making defibrillators easily accessible in public buildings, such as hockey arenas, libraries and airports, has the potential to save thousands of lives. We should be doing everything we can to get these life-saving devices in as many places as possible. In rural communities, AEDs can be few and far between. This legislation would greatly improve the ability for individuals living in rural communities who currently do not have access to an AED nearby to purchase an AED for their home, farm or cottage.

I hope all my colleagues in the House will join me in supporting this bill. Together, we can remove the tax from AEDs and help save lives.

(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)

Doug Shipley

$506,693.00