Well, that took longer than expected! NHPPA updates the Charter of Health Freedom petition count two or three times a year. The momentum intensified so much at the end of 2019, that we were stunned by the incoming envelopes from across the country. THIS will be the count to beat. We have added 5,574 hard-won signatures to the petition!
Today, NHPPA records a remarkable 111,524 signatures in favour of the Charter of Health Freedom being enacted into law. This is a critical time in our efforts to protect Canadians’ access to natural health products and practices.
How does the Charter of Health Freedom petition compare to other Canadian Federal paper petitions?
CANADA’S LARGEST FEDERAL PAPER PETITIONS
To our knowledge, with 111,524 signatures The Charter of Health Freedom petition is the third largest single Federal paper petition, pending delivery, in the last 70 years!
The largest known federal paper petition in Canadian history was delivered by The Body Shop Canada on May 28, 2018, called for a ban on the manufacture and sale of cosmetic products tested on animals. This petition collected 630,542 signatures, and changed a law!
The second largest paper petition, on record, presented to the House of Commons in Ottawa in the last 70 years, rests with 625,510 signatures. This petition was an important one – it resulted in the creation of the Canadian Bill of Rights (February 9, 1949). It was the one to beat!
While those petitions garnered hundreds of thousands of signatures, petitions with fewer signatures have also made legislation changes possible because they represent Canadians’ beliefs and what the people want:
- 85,421 signatures, presented in the House of Commons on June 21, 2011, called for the extension of medical benefits through the Employment Insurance Program
- 92,572 signatures, presented in the House of Commons on February 19, 2007, was a series of petitions against the cruelty of animals
- 96,065 signatures, presented in the House of Commons on April 27, 1999, was a series of related petitions against child pornography
Although there is no formal system in place, since the 1990’s the Clerk of Petitions in Ottawa has been tracking petition numbers. Shortly thereafter, measures were put in place within Parliament to allow citizens more direct participation, including debates on petitions.
Petitions represent the voice of the public.
In December 2015, the Canadian Parliament began accepting e-petitions.
E-PETITION VS PAPER PETITION UPDATE
Under the new 2015 system, e-petitions that garner at least 500 signatures and are sponsored by an MP will be tabled in Parliament. E-Petitions are only open for signature collection for a period of 120 days and, once tabled in Parliament, will receive a response from the government within 45 days. E-petitions are exciting and new, and they create an opportunity to have an issue presented to Parliament in a relatively short period of time.
However, they cannot be combined with or replace an already pre-existing paper petition.
It would be an extraordinary amount of work for the Clerk of Petitions or the Privy Council to cross reference the signatures gathered on the paper petition with any signatures collected online. NHPPA would have to start a brand new Charter of Health Freedom e-Petition, from scratch, and it would have to go through the validation and acceptance process.
Our existing petition for the Charter of Health Freedom must therefore remain a paper petition.
TAKE ACTION & MAKE A DIFFERENCE BY COLLECTING PETITION SIGNATURES
At the NHPPA, we want everyone to have the opportunity to add their names to this national petition demanding the freedom to choose natural health products and the right to pursue vibrant health. If you want to have your say about your freedom of choice in natural health, physically collect signatures and send them to NHPPA.
Download a printable version of the Charter of Health Freedom petition. Ask everyone you know – your family, friends, colleagues, classmates and customers – to sign the petition.
Natural Health Product Retailers and Practitioners can download our Store and Clinic Support Tools with Petition station essentials to help educate your clients and patients on the Charter of Health Freedom and today’s new risks of losing access to NHPs..
Send completed petition pages by mail to:
Natural Health Products Protection Association
5070 Fountain Street, North
Breslau, ON N0B 1M0
