OTTAWA – A bill that would enable generic drug companies to manufacture cheap AIDS drugs for developing countries cleared a major procedural hurdle in the House of Commons Feb 2 when unanimous consent was gained for the sponsorship to be transferred to NDP MP Paul Dewar. “There was a lot of work that went behind the scenes,” Masse says. “Libby Davies worked extremely well to try to gain compromise and to open the doors, and she felt that was brought forth and there was agreement on that".

OTTAWA – NDP House Leader Libby Davies persuaded the other parties to allow her NDP colleague Paul Dewar to be recognized as the bill’s new sponsor. Mr. Dewar has a slot near the top of Parliament’s order of precedence for private members’ bills, which means Bill C-393 could go to a final vote as early as March. “We saw proof today that Parliamentarians really can get things done together,” NDP industry critics Brian Masse, who has been fighting for the bill since Ms. Wasylycia-Leis’s departure, said in a press release.