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.
Bloc
Luc Malo Bloc Verchères—Les Patriotes, QC
Ms. Gravier-Grauby, in all your years of working with older people, has anyone ever said to you they would be more inclined to be physically active if they had a financial incentive to do so, but, because they did not, they preferred to sit on the couch and watch TV?
Director General, Action Santé 50 ans et plus
No.
When the government decided to give parents a $500 tax credit for registering their children in a physical activity program, everyone around the country heard about it. In Quebec, people would ask me why parents were being allowed to claim that amount for their children, when they, as long-time taxpayers, were not eligible for it, even though they were being physically active and costing society much less.
That is why I said I have been wanting to talk about this for years. I have sent letters to every minister. And in return, I get these lovely replies acknowledging my letters, but nothing more. We must take action. I always said to myself that whenever I finally got the opportunity to use my voice instead of my pen, I would say loud and clear let's get moving! We are all getting older. At my age, much of my life is behind me. All of you here today get a little older each and every day. In 10 years, you will be the ones costing society a pretty penny. Do something about it.
Mr. Malo, people tell me that once they start living an active lifestyle—and I am no doctor, but this is what people tell me—they take fewer drugs. I am around people 50 plus. They are proud of themselves, and that is huge. The fact that I can bring together 600 people for 4 days shows just how much people 50 plus need to be physically active.
I have been listening to everyone. And there is a lot of focus on children, which is fine. But when are we going to focus on adults and those 50 plus? That is the generation putting a heavy financial burden on society, a burden that will only continue to grow because, each and every day, we all get a little older.
So this is what I want to say to the government: do something. That is my message today.
President and Chief Executive Officer, ParticipACTION
We have a lot of passion in our sector.
Jim Chauvin Member, Advocacy Committee, Chronic Disease Prevention Alliance of Canada
Thank you very much.
My name is Jim Chauvin. I am the director of policy development at the Canadian Public Health Association, and, as my colleague mentioned, I am a volunteer member of CDPAC's advocacy committee.
I would like to respond to Mr. Malo's question.
I do not think there are any studies showing what the impact of the children's fitness tax credit has been. I am a grandfather. As far as I know, you need to spend money to take advantage of the tax credit. You do not get it automatically. So it would be worthwhile to see who this credit has really benefited, based on income, and how it has affected children's health.
My daughter teaches at a school in Hull, in a poor part of the city. There is nowhere for kids to play, nothing. So you cannot say that the credit has done its job and benefited children from poor families or that it has improved these kids' fitness levels, when there is nowhere for them to even play. No sports facility, nothing.
What can the federal government do? It can work with cities to create safe environments for these kids, a place where they can play and be active, a place that could also be used by people in our generation.
Thank you.
NDP
Megan Leslie NDP Halifax, NS
Thank you.
As others have said, there are no studies, no statistics, nothing of that nature.
to prove anything.
Mr. Arango, you've done a great job approaching MPs with this information from the Alliance. You and I have met, and some of the information you gave me was completely mind-blowing. We've talked a bit about it at committee before your appearance, so I'm glad you're here today.
I want to turn it over to you to explain a little more about regulatory regimes restricting marketing to kids. I think this is brilliant. I've brought up the example of Quebec many times.
Is there anything else you want to add about that?
Member, Advocacy Committee, Chronic Disease Prevention Alliance of Canada
You may have noticed from our recommendations that we are keen to work with industry, and I'll tell you why. I'll speak to regulations as well.
With the trans fat experience, we know that regulations ideally would have been the best thing. But by having a volunteer-structured approach, as the government used with the food industry on trans fats, we did see some improvements. In the interim, it was successful at moving the yardstick.
Similarly with marketing to kids, we would like to work with the food industry to improve things in the short term. At the end of the day we do acknowledge that regulations are the most effective way to prohibit marketing to children. And if you look at the Quebec example, they've been pretty successful. They are world-renowned in that respect.
It's ideal to have regulations, but in the interim we would support all measures that can be effective.
NDP
Megan Leslie NDP Halifax, NS
Thanks.
Ms. Grantham and Ms. Murumets, you both gave quite impassioned pleas about the fact that this is a federal issue and requires federal leadership. Time and time again, I hear our government say, “Well, it's about choice and everybody should have the choice. With my kids, if you give them an apple or a chocolate bar, they're going to eat the chocolate bar.” I'm so frustrated with that answer all the time because I do believe there is a role for government here.
I'd like to turn it over to both of you to talk about why you think this is a federal issue that demands federal leadership.
President and Chief Executive Officer, ParticipACTION
It requires multi-sectoral participation. But I believe that every initiative requires leadership, and this one is so impactful in terms of the prosperity and the future of our country that it needs to start at the federal level. The leadership needs to start with the federal government, but it has to include provincial, territorial, and ultimately municipal governments—as I said, all sectors.
It needs to start at the federal level, and just talking about choice isn't good enough. We need policies, infrastructure, schools, after school programs, and dollars deployed to community-based programs that make the healthy choice the easy choice—I think you might have used that term when you started. That's ultimately what I believe ParticipACTION at least is looking for.
If you think about the different facets that are required for an ultimate solution, they all require some intervention to make the easy choice the healthy choice. For me, it needs to start at the federal government.
Just to say that individuals make choices is not good enough anymore because the current situation is no longer sustainable. We are bankrupting the future of our country. It's not some hyperbole or melodrama; it's actuarially based statistical fact.
NDP
Megan Leslie NDP Halifax, NS
Like making the choice to walk to work or school but there are no sidewalks, for example.
Executive Director, Physical and Health Education Canada
Absolutely.
I don't have much to add to that. I completely agree with Kelly. We need to show this is a serious issue. And the commitment and intensity of how we're going to address this needs to start at the federal level. We see it in other countries as well.
As Kelly pointed out, it is all intersected in terms of policies, infrastructure, education, health, and workplace justice. You need to take that leadership at the national level to be able to turn these statistics around. It's hard to take it seriously when it doesn't seem it is taken seriously at the federal level.
NDP
Megan Leslie NDP Halifax, NS
Thanks.
Ms. Piazza, talking about walking to work, I was hoping to ask you a bit more about the recreational infrastructure fund and bringing it back.
Director, Research and Health Policy, Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada
Has it gone yet? I think it's about to expire; I think it has a month or so left.
From our understanding, this fund has had a high uptake. There have been a lot of initiatives. I think $500 million was dedicated to the fund for two years. Often in such cases there's not such a high uptake.
I think it's encouraging that this fund is successful, and hopefully it will be continued. I think it runs out at the end of March, or it's coming up soon.
Director, Research and Health Policy, Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada
The Heart and Stroke Foundation has done a lot of work on the built environment and in terms of the federal government's role—again, as I said before, dedicating money to sidewalks, to making walking an easy choice; public transportation. Just walking to and from public transportation is activity.
What the Heart and Stroke Foundation believes is that physical activity should be incorporated into your everyday activities. You shouldn't really have to jump into spandex and run—
Director, Research and Health Policy, Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada
—though it's great if you do.
The physical activity guidelines are very doable: 150 minutes a week. At Heart and Stroke we would say you can do that in 10-minute segments if you have to, but get up and move. Leave at lunch and walk in one direction for 10 minutes and then walk back. But you have to be able to walk.
Conservative
Conservative
Colin Carrie Conservative Oshawa, ON
Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
I do want to thank all the witnesses for being here.
I do want to commend...there have been, as you said, a lot of initiatives, a lot of partnerships. I know we've been looking at it seriously, everything from Canada's food guide to, as you mentioned, the rink infrastructure, to the record amount of money that we did partner with municipalities over the last couple of years for infrastructure. I was very proud of the minister in Newfoundland when she did come up with that commitment with the provinces and territories for the first time to start looking at the obesity issue. And there is partnering, of course, with NGOs such as ParticipACTION. It is something that is ongoing.
I'm very interested in exploring a little bit more some of the things that were said today. Ms. Murumets and Mr. Arango, you mentioned industry and the importance of industry and the influence on consumer behaviour, things along those lines. But I was wondering, what role can industry play in making healthy choices attractive, especially to children? At the end of the day, as I believe Madame Gravier-Grauby mentioned, it's all about individuals and the choices they make throughout their lives. All of us can do better in helping to direct especially the kids on these important choices that can affect them as they go through their lives.
I was wondering what role industry can play in making healthy choices attractive, especially to kids.
Ms. Murumets, can you start?
