I never make a face at you. I gaze at you in admiration, Madam Chair.
Thanks to the witnesses for being here today. We have questions, and we're very grateful that they are here to answer them.
Mr. Bernard, as you know, we've heard some quite impactful testimony concerning actions and events that have occurred at the Canadian Fencing Federation.
I'm going to read some of the concerns that one of the newspapers made public.
This is from CTV on March 23, 2023.
More than 50 current and former Canadian fencers have joined a growing call for a Canadian judicial inquiry on maltreatment in sport, saying the fear of retribution has kept them silent for nearly 20 years on fencing's toxic culture and abusive practices.
The article cites the group:
“Over the past 20 years, we have experienced various forms of emotional, physical and sexual abuse and misconduct.”
It goes on:
Many are still feeling the psychological and physical impact, including depression, anxiety, eating disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder and suicide attempts, the fencers said in the letter [to the minister].
At that time, on March 23, there had been no response from the federation. What steps did you take from the moment that letter was sent to the minister?