Thank you, Madam Chair and members of the committee.
I'm Joan MacDonald, the director general of dispute resolution at the Canadian Transportation Agency. My colleague is Mary-Jane Gravelle, our director of accessible transportation at the agency.
The Canadian Transportation Agency is a federal administrative tribunal whose jurisdiction covers a wide range of economic matters affecting air, rail, and marine modes, and includes accessible transportation for persons with disabilities. Its role is to provide effective dispute resolution and economic regulation through its mandate that is set out in the Canada Transportation Act.
As an independent administrative tribunal, the agency has the powers of a court of justice and can make binding decisions.
Rulings are made by the agency's five full-time members, who are appointed by the Governor in Council and supported in their work by the 260 staff of the agency.
Before I go any further, I would like to underline that my observations today do not apply to service animals such as guide dogs for blind persons, which are obviously not considered pets. Canadian carriers operating larger-size aircraft in Canada are required by agency regulation to carry these service animals in the cabin.
Before addressing complaints related to pet-related accessibility issues, I would briefly describe air tariffs.
A tariff is the contract between the passengers and the airline. Carriers are generally free to set the terms and conditions contained in them, provided they are clear, just, and reasonable. Tariffs can cover a wide variety of matters, including whether or not pets can be carried in the cabin, the cargo hold, or the baggage compartment.
Today most of the pet-related tariff cases the agency has handled involve the carriage of pets in airplane baggage compartments. But one tariff case was about allowing a pet in the aircraft cabin, which the carrier's tariff at that time did not allow.
The agency has also received access-related complaints filed by air travellers who are allergic to pets.
Although the agency's mandate does not cover health issues per se, its enabling statute provides it with the power to remove what we call undue obstacles to the mobility of persons with disabilities. The agency does this through various means: voluntary codes of practice, regulations, binding decisions on individual complaints, and ordering corrective measures to remove barriers to travel.
One complex question the agency has had to answer is whether an allergy is a disability for the purposes of the Canada Transportation Act. The agency has ruled that an allergy per se is not a disability, but there may be people with allergies who may be considered as having disabilities under the act. So we examine each allergy-related complaint on a case-by-case basis using the World Health Organization model of disability to determine if a health impairment affects the person's ability to travel. If it is in the affirmative, the agency then examines whether the person experienced an obstacle, and if so whether it was undue. Then corrective measures can be taken.
At present we have eight active allergy-related cases involving Air Canada and WestJet. Four of these involve allergies to animals in the aircraft cabins.
To assist the agency in its understanding of allergies it has hired a doctor who is an allergy specialist to prepare a report for us. It also includes a component related to dog and cat allergens.
Regarding the specific pet allergy complaints, as the cases are currently being formally adjudicated before the agency I can only speak to the process we are following.
At the present time, the agency is receiving written pleadings from the complainants and the air carriers. The pleadings of complainants include medical documents.
Once these pleadings are complete, the agency then will be in a position to weigh all the evidence and decide on the next course of action, which could include decisions on the disability status, the obstacles and their undueness, and possible corrective measures.
I hope this quick overview will answer some of your questions about the role of the agency in relation to the concerns of persons with allergies travelling by air.
Madam Chair, this concludes the Canadian Transportation Agency's presentation to the Standing Committee on Health. We would be pleased to answer any questions you might have.