Thank you, Madam Chair.
I'd like to thank all the witnesses for their very informative presentations. The witnesses we heard from yesterday also brought up federal funding given that the federal government is currently studying the matter to see how the Public Health Agency of Canada can help.
What do you think the current needs are? The Public Health Agency of Canada officials who were here yesterday told us that the agency had invested $25 million in physical activity programming for people of all ages, not just youth. Nothing, however, had been set aside for rural communities, or vulnerable or underprivileged populations.
What would you recommend in terms of funding? How much do you think is necessary? We've heard some say that the cost of inactivity is as high as $6 billion and that, when it comes to physical activity, Canada gets a D- or C+. In fact, Canada ranks 17 out of 29. That's terrible considering what we know about how the lack of physical activity affects physical and mental health, not to mention the cost to productivity and the economy.
Given that inactivity costs the health care system an estimated $6 billion, what should the initial investment in programming and prevention be? What do you suggest we put in place? My questions are for all of you.