PASSED: Food and Drug Standards

[Qumkent]

None at all your Excellency. but we made one slight mistake in using the singular "business" instead of "businesses" in our wording which should perhaps be rectified for reasons of clarity.


Yours,

[Qumkent]

Oh and perhaps the last phrase should read-

(B)The establishment of forfeits for any business that attempt to evade safety standards upon their products; the nature and degree of such forfeits being left at the discretion of the WAFDRA and the establishment of appropriate legal consequences should any quality control facilities be found to be failing in their duty to assure the quality of the products they are charged with inspecting.

Yours,

[Bears Armed]

EMPOWERS the WAFDRA to close down any food and drug regulatory facilities that are found to repeatedly fail to succeed in ensuring the quality of the products being inspected

OOC: Might this arguably confer 'police' powers, albeit on this very limited basis? Perhaps it could be modified to let them "order the closure of" those facilities, instead, thus leaving the actual close-down to 'local' authorities?

[Greenlandic People]

Thank you your honor; the keen eye of the ursine people is to be much lauded. The clause in question has been changed to read as such:

EMPOWERS the WAFDRA order the closure of any food and drug regulatory facilities that are found to repeatedly fail to succeed in ensuring the quality of the products being inspected; the closure shall be carried out by national law-enforcement

[Krioval]

Food and Drug Standards
A resolution to improve worldwide human and civil rights

This proposal, if it is to be free trade, would read differently above (text above is from "human rights").

Category: Free Trade
Strength: ???
Proposed By; Greenlandic People

OBSERVING the poor or irregular quality control in the food and drug industries of many nations

BELIEVING that such poor quality assurance in business endangers the consumer’s health and living standard

SEEKING to establish a firm system of quality control and standards in these industries

These seem to be more social justice-oriented reasons for establishing this legislation. Perhaps Your Excellency should reword the above clauses to indicate that trade, rather than safety, is the reason for the proposal?

Hereby:

REQUIRES member-states to regularly inspect their quality control facilities in order to ensure that they are performing to international standards

DEMANDS that all food and drug products produced in member states must undergo safety and quality screening before being released to the consumer market

CREATES the World Assembly Food and Drug Regulatory Agency (WAFDRA)

CHARGES the WAFDRA with the responsibility to ensure that the food and drug regulatory agencies of member-states are performing satisfactorily; also to gradually implement reforms to the quality regulation authorities of member-states

MANDATES that such reforms shall include:
(A)The creation of a quality grade system by which all food and drug products shall receive a grade marking their relative level of quality and safety

(B)The establishment of forfeits for any businesses that attempt to evade safety standards upon their products; the nature and degree of such forfeits being left at the discretion of the WAFDRA and the establishment of appropriate legal consequences should any quality control facilities be found to be failing in their duty to assure the quality of the products they are charged with inspecting

(C)The creation of a team of WAFDRA inspectors who shall visit product inspection facilities in order to determine if they are still performing adequately to the standards of the WAFDRA on an annual basis or earlier upon the request of the committee

(D)The creation of an overall international standard to which all inspection facilities in member-states shall be measured against; also the creation of international standards by which to measure the safety of food and drug products

ASSERTS that in nations where there is no system of quality control the WAFDRA shall work with the national government to eventually establish such agencies

EMPOWERS the WAFDRA order the closure of any food and drug regulatory facilities that are found to repeatedly fail to succeed in ensuring the quality of the products being inspected; the closure shall be carried out by national law-enforcement

NOTES that producers and vendors of de minimis quantities of food and drugs shall be exempt from the above clauses so long as they post visible notice at their place of sales that they are not operating under international standards

As it stands, this proposal reads more like social justice than free trade. Also, I am not versed well in my Latin, so how is "de minimis" defined legally?

The Great Chiefdom feels that this proposal is of strong quality, though we are concerned that the tone does not match the category. If Your Excellency desires, I will attempt to think of wording that matches a free trade emphasis for this proposal, though it may take some time.

[Lord] Ambassador Darvek Tyvok
Great Chiefdom of Krioval

[Greenlandic People]

As it stands, this proposal reads more like social justice than free trade. Also, I am not versed well in my Latin, so how is "de minimis" defined legally?

The Great Chiefdom feels that this proposal is of strong quality, though we are concerned that the tone does not match the category. If Your Excellency desires, I will attempt to think of wording that matches a free trade emphasis for this proposal, though it may take some time.

[Lord] Ambassador Darvek Tyvok
Great Chiefdom of Krioval

“De Minimis” refers to quantities of an item that are so insignificant as to be unworthy of the attention of the law.

I've been debating the category internally since the beginning, honored ambassador, and I still don’t know what category it should be filed under. Certainly it puts safeguards in place requiring businesses to test their food and drugs before distribution. Wouldn’t that be Social Justice then, for increasing the welfare of the citizens? More so than it demolishes trade barriers, at any rate? I’m leaning toward a Social Justice submission right now.

[Bears Armed]

OOC: 'Social Justice' proposals have to increase average incomes "reduce income inequality", too...
To help justify this as a 'Free Trade' proposal, try stressing how such increased guarantees of quality will encourage people to buy the goods concerned...
Alternatively, as it's "laying down the law", the seriously-underused catgeory of 'Moral Decency' would seem useable.

[Qumkent]

OOC: 'Social Justice' proposals have to increase average incomes, too...
To help justify this as a 'Free Trade' proposal, try stressing how such increased guarantees of quality will encourage people to buy the goods concerned...
Alternatively, as it's "laying down the law", the seriously-underused catgeory of 'Moral Decency' would seem useable.

OOC that's an interesting one, wouldn't it reduce social freedoms though ? You'd have to aim it at unscrupulous and immoral traders and producers if you were trying to fit that category wouldn't you ?

[Bears Armed]

OOC: 'Social Justice' proposals have to increase average incomes, too...
To help justify this as a 'Free Trade' proposal, try stressing how such increased guarantees of quality will encourage people to buy the goods concerned...
Alternatively, as it's "laying down the law", the seriously-underused catgeory of 'Moral Decency' would seem useable.

OOC that's an interesting one, wouldn't it reduce social freedoms though ? You'd have to aim it at unscrupulous and immoral traders and producers if you were trying to fit that category wouldn't you ?

Well, you'd at least have to mention stopping/catching them as a major motive for this law... but I think that that would be enough to justify it.

[Greenlandic People]

OOC: My logic for choosing Social Justice comes from this summary in the GA Proposals Rules thread:

Social Justice
A resolution to reduce income inequality and increase basic welfare.

These are almost exactly opposed types of resolutions. Both affect Economic freedoms. "Free Trade" increases Economic freedoms while "Social Justice" reduces Economic freedoms. In addition, "Social Justice" also increases government spending on welfare and healthcare (though "Free Trade" does not have an opposite effect). Economic freedoms primarily discuss how much regulation there is on business/industry or how much government spending goes to helping poor/sick people. Total Economic freedom is Laissez-faire Capitalism. Zero Economic freedom is a completely government-controlled economy. Creating a Food and Drug Administration in all WA member nations, or creating a Securities and Exchange Commission in all WA member nations is imposing a mild form of Economic control, and therefore a mild reduction of Economic freedoms; you're imposing restrictions on what businesses and industries may do and you're moving away from a completely-uncontrolled Laissez-faire system.

It seems to indicate that a Food and Drug authority is a matter for the Social Justice category

[Bears Armed]

OOC: My logic for choosing Social Justice comes from this summary in the GA Proposals Rules thread:

Social Justice
A resolution to reduce income inequality and increase basic welfare.

It seems to indicate that a Food and Drug authority is a matter for the Social Justice category

Not unless it acts to "reduce income inequality" as well as to "increase basic welfare": It's been established by past Mod rulings, if it isn't actually somewhere in those rules anyway, that 'Social Justice' resolutions must do both...

[Greenlandic People]

OOC: My logic for choosing Social Justice comes from this summary in the GA Proposals Rules thread:

Social Justice
A resolution to reduce income inequality and increase basic welfare.

It seems to indicate that a Food and Drug authority is a matter for the Social Justice category

Not unless it acts to "reduce income inequality" as well as to "increase basic welfare": It's been established by past Mod rulings, if it isn't actually somewhere in those rules anyway, that 'Social Justice' resolutions must do both...

Well then in that case moral decency might work, because in effect I'm restricting what nations can and cannot sell as food or drugs?

It seems like I may have to go with Free Trade otherwise, in which case an extensive and rather annoying re-write in language may be necessary in order to change the focus to trade.

[Krioval]

Well then in that case moral decency might work, because in effect I'm restricting what nations can and cannot sell as food or drugs?

It seems like I may have to go with Free Trade otherwise, in which case an extensive and rather annoying re-write in language may be necessary in order to change the focus to trade.

OOC: I can't see moral decency working either, though - this proposal clearly deals with economic matters, not social/civil rights. Based on the entire wording of the social justice template:

Creating a Food and Drug Administration in all WA member nations, or creating a Securities and Exchange Commission in all WA member nations is imposing a mild form of Economic control, and therefore a mild reduction of Economic freedoms; you're imposing restrictions on what businesses and industries may do and you're moving away from a completely-uncontrolled Laissez-faire system.

I would say that the bold parts line up almost exactly with the intent of this proposal. It will reduce economic freedom by imposing controls. The strength should probably be "mild" because trade is not unduly restrained. If you do decide to go free trade with this, the committee and the regulations would have to be almost relegated to the level of an afterthought.

As far as social justice proposals needing to both restrain trade *and* promote social equality/welfare, creating a drug regulation agency probably would do both to a small extent - money has to be spent to create and enforce the regulations, and that money probably has to come from a social equality/welfare budget.

[Greenlandic People]

Should I maybe ask a game mod if Social Justice would be legal?

[Krioval]

Should I maybe ask a game mod if Social Justice would be legal?

OOC: Eh. You could, but they tend to not delete well-reasoned and well-defined proposals. I sent mine in, and basically got an OK (here - Ard is awesome like that). Here is another example, where a proposal was actually deleted for rules violation (see Ard's posts, they tend to explain the position of moderation toward WA legality concerns).

EDIT: You won't be raked over coals if the proposal violates a minor technicality, as I don't think honest mistakes result in warnings.

Note: I am not a moderator!

[Greenlandic People]

The draft has been updated. Barring any severe flaws or concerns, I should inform the honored ambassadors that I am planning to submit this proposal before much longer.

I shall first submit this proposal under Social Justice, and if it is found to be illegal under that category then I shall attempt a submission under Moral Decency.

[Krioval]

OOC: Looks good. Mild or significant strength?

[Greenlandic People]

OOC: Looks good. Mild or significant strength?

I'm thinking significant

[Krioval]

OOC: Sounds good.

[Bears Armed]

Well then in that case moral decency might work, because in effect I'm restricting what nations can and cannot sell as food or drugs?

It seems like I may have to go with Free Trade otherwise, in which case an extensive and rather annoying re-write in language may be necessary in order to change the focus to trade.

OOC: I can't see moral decency working either, though - this proposal clearly deals with economic matters, not social/civil rights.

It would still be a case of governments telling people "Thou shalt not", in respect of a matter that doesn't involve Guns, Gambling or Recreational Drugs -- or 'political' freedoms -- so 'Moral Decency' would fit well enough.

[Greenlandic People]

Honored ambassadors, at this time the final draft of this proposal has been submitted to the World Assembly

I would appreciate any approvals that you are willing to give at this time

[Glomeland]

BUMP. At Vote now.

[Qumkent]

We have been enthusiastically instructed by the government of the Principality of Qumkent to vote for this statute and we recommend it to the membership.


Yours sincerely,

[Glomeland]

The Republic of Glomeland supports this wholeheartedly and has voted for.

Eyðvør Eilifsdóttir
World Assembly Ambassador
The Republic of Glomeland

[Buchanan-1]

This is something that should be left to the individual nation.