Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, MP Sonia Sidhu, for allowing me to share your time today.
Thank you to the witnesses for being here.
Minister, thank you for being here. It's an honour and a privilege to work with you as your parliamentary secretary.
We all know that physical activity improves lives and improves health. It improves physical and mental health and makes our communities stronger, but if we have a healthier society, it also reduces the strain on our health care system. Recently, we've seen some data from UNICEF indicating that for children's health—a study we've just almost completed—the rates are lower than we'd expect for a country with our considerable wealth and resources.
The promotion of physical activity is crucial, but also, I think, our government has a role to play in bridging the gap and reducing some barriers to access to physical activity, because it is medicine. It is preventative health care. We talk a lot about health care and perhaps not enough about health. What can we do to promote physical activity and exercise—not just for youth, particularly, but for all Canadians—and to also reduce some of the barriers to access for that preventative health care measure?
Thank you, Minister.