Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Minister, for being here with us today to discuss this very difficult but very important matter.
As the previous minister Kirsty Duncan's work has been mentioned a couple of times, I would like to at least make the committee aware of the fact that she convened a working group to combat gender-based violence in Canada a full year prior to this incident. Minister Duncan was and continues to be a strong advocate for this. As a former gymnast, she has lots of lived experience, and she continues to be a wonderful advocate. I say that because I was a member of that working group prior to my time in politics.
We came to Ottawa a number of times. At that time, we established four things. We said there needed to be a universal code of conduct. There needs to be an independent organization to investigate, adjudicate and deal with all of the issues in safe sport. That needs to be mandatory for all national sport organizations, and that system needs to be fully vetted by the federal government.
As a result of the $16 million that you made sure was in this last budget, all four of those things are true.
I wrote my first letter to Sport Canada in 1999. I've urged action from and worked at arm's length with sports ministers in Canada for over 20 years, and I've been parliamentary secretary for sport for almost three.
It's my objective opinion that no previous minister of sport has ever worked harder or responded so swiftly or with more concrete action than you have, Minister. I want to acknowledge that. Obviously, this is my objective opinion as your parliamentary secretary, but I'm so tremendously proud of the work you have done and the work that your team has done. I want to thank you on behalf of the Canadian sports system. This is something that has been asked of this government, and previous governments too, for a really long time.
We are doing a good job, and I would love to provide you with an opportunity to talk about some of the work we've done so recently that it might not even be in the news. It was even just last weekend.
Please, the floor is yours.