Absolutely.
Evidence of meeting #49 for Health in the 40th Parliament, 3rd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was schools.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Evidence of meeting #49 for Health in the 40th Parliament, 3rd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was schools.
A recording is available from Parliament.
4:45 p.m.
Member, Advocacy Committee, Chronic Disease Prevention Alliance of Canada
I'll just follow up on that.
We've contacted the Canadian Public Health Association and we've been in contact with our members across the country, including the 115 public health units across the country. We are disseminating it to them. But it's exactly what you said; I will support you in that totally. The guidelines are one thing, but where are the tools and resources that go with them?
Our members are going to be asking for those tools and resources, and CPHA would be very.... We're going to be ready to help you in this, but again, the guidelines are one thing, but we need the tools and resources for the front-line practitioners, for the teachers, to make this happen.
4:50 p.m.
Conservative
4:50 p.m.
Bloc
Josée Beaudin Bloc Saint-Lambert, QC
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Welcome everyone.
I find this pretty discouraging. What I am hearing is that our children are in worse shape than we are. I would have thought the opposite. I want to find ways the federal government can fix this. There is talk of taxing sugar-filled drinks. To my mind, that would be a deterrent, and I hope it is.
Mr. Arango, you talked about a refundable tax credit, ideally. So it would only be for families who pay taxes. What about those families who are the least well-off, who are probably one of the major target groups for encouraging physical fitness. I am also on another committee that has studied child poverty, and I know that we have not eradicated child poverty in the past 10 or 20 years. These parents are certainly an important target group. I am trying to figure this out.
We also have advertising aimed at children. Our kids don't move anymore, and the Internet and computer games are partially to blame. So I think we need to get out there and work as closely with these people as possible. You talked about creating environments for physical activity in the neighbourhoods where these people live, and I see what you are saying.
In Quebec, we have Kino-Québec and many other initiatives that help to create these kinds of environments. Municipalities and provincial governments have a much bigger hand in this. Do you not think it would be easier to speak with people at those levels first, to press them for action, rather than the federal government? I am not at all opposed to hearing what you have to say. There are clearly things we can do, but I think that a society should also appeal to its more immediate representatives for family policies that integrate free physical activity and sports programs, and so forth. I would like to hear your thoughts on that.
We are hearing about creating environments for physical activity, but that involves more than just developing and implementing programs. The first thing we did in Quebec was ask the people concerned what programs they wanted, what their needs were. That approach proved successful for us. Then we sat down with our partners and each of them figured out what their role in the program could be. They also incorporated that contribution into their individual action plans. That approach is one of the keys to success. It got schools involved in programs. It seems to me that some of the solutions are already available. I would like to hear what you have to say about that.
4:50 p.m.
Member, Advocacy Committee, Chronic Disease Prevention Alliance of Canada
I'll just very quickly comment.
I'm going to take my Chronic Disease Prevention Alliance of Canada hat off and put my Heart and Stroke Foundation hat on.
The foundation works with all levels of government, and you're absolutely correct that you have to work at the municipal level as well. So whenever we make recommendations on any particular issue, it's always to the federal, provincial, and municipal governments.
We are a federated organization. We have a presence in communities across the country, and our local organizations and provincial heart and stroke foundations work with municipalities and provincial governments as well.
So, yes, you're absolutely correct that municipalities have an important role to play. For example, with respect to active transportation infrastructure, that's really the jurisdiction of municipalities. They receive transfer payments from the federal government, but at the end of the day it's their decision whether they should put the money into sidewalks, walking paths, recreational infrastructure, etc. So they do have an important role to play there.
As well, they have a jurisdiction with schools. I know, for example, in Quebec, a lot of school boards—and this may be province-wide legislation, I'm not sure—have taken sugary, sweetened beverages out of schools.
So, definitely, municipal governments have an important role to play.
4:50 p.m.
Director General, Action Santé 50 ans et plus
The city of Boucherville formed partnerships to carry out a project aimed at 18 to 80 year olds. Under this initiative, the first of its kind in the entire Montérégie region, participants can take part in a free exercise program in a park designed for all ages. The park just opened. I am not sure whether Mr. Malo was there with Mr. Martel, who has a new team in Boucherville and who is making every effort to promote prevention. And the program is not just for those 50 plus. Participants even have access to free exercise activities and descriptive display panels. People exercise outdoors. The park is not used in the winter, but it is used in the spring, summer and fall.
Why don't other municipalities offer the same thing? It does not cost anything to get in shape. This partnership does not cost much and offers every resident an opportunity to get active. I encourage you to visit and see how active we all are, up in Boucherville.
That is what we are doing in Boucherville, in Quebec. Take a look at what we are doing, so we can bring other municipalities on board. Let's get moving!
4:55 p.m.
Conservative
Tilly O'Neill-Gordon Conservative Miramichi, NB
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I want to thank all the witnesses for joining us today.
I've only been on this committee for about two weeks now, and all of the topics have been very enjoyable and very educational.
I also have to say that over the last two years, in the witnesses who we did see, we did focus an awful lot on the youth. Coming from a classroom, I can see the need of doing that, but I like Josée's idea of looking now at people who are 50 and over—maybe because I'm there, I guess. In 10 years' time we're going to be the ones who are going to be costing the government a lot of money. Plus, the other reason is that we are the ones the youth are going to be looking to right now as an example. So you're almost killing two birds with one stone.
Kelly, you spoke about travelling to Europe, but now Josée just told us about Quebec, so we don't have to go all the way to Europe. But when we look at Europe, we all know from history that the people of Europe are very active. They're healthy and they're fit. I'm wondering if, along your way, you came across any incentives that were focused just for those 50 and over?
4:55 p.m.
President and Chief Executive Officer, ParticipACTION
That was Andrea, so I'll let Andrea answer.
4:55 p.m.
Executive Director, Physical and Health Education Canada
I don't recall exactly anything specific. They talked a lot about school-based programs and active transportation. That was a big part of their focus. I don't recall maybe because my focus is on children and youth. That's what I was listening for.
4:55 p.m.
President and Chief Executive Officer, ParticipACTION
I can answer that, but I can't relate it to Europe.
ParticipACTION ultimately needs to speak to all Canadians. We have limited resources, so we try to be laser-sharp focused.
While our most recent campaign actually supports 100% physical activity guidelines, we're the second way to communicate those guidelines. We speak to families. So our thinking is that mothers of school-aged children, because they're the principal decision-makers in a family, will influence, yes, their partner and their kids, but they'll also influence their parents because of the sandwich generation.
We know, indisputably, that more active parents have more active children. And at ParticipACTION we've really been thinking about Canadians as families and trying to attack the issue from that perspective, because that's, in our minds, the greatest return on our investment in terms of dollars.
So that's how we've been speaking with that 35- to 50-year-old crowd.
4:55 p.m.
Conservative
Tilly O'Neill-Gordon Conservative Miramichi, NB
That's a good point. Does anyone else have a comment?
4:55 p.m.
Director, Research and Health Policy, Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada
One thing you see in Europe is infrastructure that encourages physical activity. I was in Munich not long ago and I was blown away by the number of bicycles, the ring roads to keep the traffic out, the big wide sidewalks, and the bicycle paths integrated with the sidewalk instead of along the side of the road.
I think all age groups benefit. You see people my age zooming around everywhere on their bicycles. It's a way of life. I think there is a role for all levels of government. Heart and Stroke Foundation works with all levels of government, and there is a role for the federal government in supporting this kind of infrastructure in Canada.
4:55 p.m.
Conservative
Tilly O'Neill-Gordon Conservative Miramichi, NB
I believe that all levels of government are becoming more involved in this. I assure you that our government wants to help in any way we can. As elected MPs, we will be voicing the opinion we heard here today. I'm glad to have you here as our witnesses.
4:55 p.m.
Conservative
4:55 p.m.
Liberal
Kirsty Duncan Liberal Etobicoke North, ON
I'm going to come back to healthy schools. I understand the jurisdictional issues. Are there data on physical activities in schools across this country?
5 p.m.
Executive Director, Physical and Health Education Canada
It's very piecemeal. It's a hard thing to measure, especially in physical education. In many provinces, it's a recommended time period, not a mandated one. Schools are not accountable for reporting what is being delivered in physical education.
5 p.m.
Liberal
Kirsty Duncan Liberal Etobicoke North, ON
Could you table with the committee whatever that piecemeal information is? Could you table what information we have?
February 10th, 2011 / 5 p.m.
Executive Director, Physical and Health Education Canada
There's some information on daily physical activity initiatives. In Alberta, they mandated daily physical activity for 30 minutes in early 2000. Ontario did something similar, so that we do have, and I can certainly share it with you later.
5 p.m.
Liberal
Kirsty Duncan Liberal Etobicoke North, ON
Could you put that together and submit it back to the committee?
