Evidence of meeting #3 for Status of Women in the 43rd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was work.

A recording is available from Parliament.

On the agenda

MPs speaking

Also speaking

Nancy Gardiner  Assistant Deputy Minister, Department for Women and Gender Equality
Suzanne Cooper  Director, Strategic Policy, Policy and External Relations Directorate, Department for Women and Gender Equality
Lisa Smylie  Director General, Communications and Public Affairs Branch, Research, Results and Delivery Branch, Department for Women and Gender Equality

11 a.m.

Conservative

The Chair Conservative Karen Vecchio

Good morning, everybody, and welcome to the 43rd Parliament and our second meeting of the status of women committee.

Today we're going to be talking about supplementary estimates (B) of the 2019-20 budget and vote 5b under Department for Women and Gender Equality.

Today we have with us the Honourable Maryam Monsef, who is the Minister for Women and Gender Equality.

Welcome, Ms. Monsef.

We also have with us, as our witnesses from the department, Guylaine Roy, the deputy minister, and Nancy Gardiner, the assistant deputy minister.

Thank you very much for joining us.

I am going to pass the floor over to you, Minister. You have 10 minutes, but we're flexible here.

11 a.m.

Peterborough—Kawartha Ontario

Liberal

Maryam Monsef LiberalMinister for Women and Gender Equality

Thank you so much, Madam Chair.

Hello everyone, bonjour, aaniin, as-salaam alaikum.

Congratulations on being appointed to this very important committee in these very important times.

I'd like to begin by acknowledging that we are on unceded Algonquin territory.

I will spend the time you've provided me, Madam Chair, talking a little bit about what my mandate is and talking a bit about supplementary estimates (B) and how they help advance gender equality in Canada. Hopefully, we'll have an opportunity for some discussion.

This committee in the past has helped inform significant policies and programs that have come out of my department. This committee's work on violence against women and girls informed Canada's first federal strategy to address and prevent gender-based violence. I know that folks around this table, like so many parents and youth across the country, are concerned about online violence, and the work that this committee did in its previous iteration to address revenge porn on social media sites provides a really good benchmark for what can happen in terms of significant change when we work together across party lines.

I look forward to continuing the work and the partnership.

When the Prime Minister appointed me as the Minister for Women and Gender Equality last fall, he entrusted me with the mission of driving systemic change that promotes a fairer and more inclusive society for women and for LGBTQ2 and gender-diverse peoples—when I say women, I mean the broad intersections of women—by improving the quality of their life, by working to ensure that this country is safer and by working to ensure that more of us end up around decision-making tables such as this one.

To advance systemic change, one of the tools that the Government of Canada has at its disposal—and Canada introduced the tool at Beijing in 1995—is gender-based analysis. We apply an intersectional gendered lens to the implementation, design and evaluation of our programs and services. Doing this provides a better understanding of the intersections of sex and gender but also of the ways in which various other identity factors—rurality, indigeneity, disabilities, age, whether you are a francophone living in an anglophone majority community or vice versa, your immigration status, and who and how you love— affect the way that society treats you, as well as the barriers and the opportunities that are in the way. That's what GBA+ allows us to do.

We have, over the past five years, been able to bring forward significant change. I'm going to talk a little bit about that change, recognizing too though that we have much more to do. For every step we've taken forward and those who have come before us have taken forward, there has been backlash. That backlash is alive and well here in Canada but also around the world, and it impacts our ability to progress and to achieve equality for all.

Right now, I can tell you that over the past five years, Canada has moved up 11 places in the World Economic Forum's gender equality index. That's significant. There are plans, programs, and laws in place now that didn't exist before. For example—and I know colleagues debated Bill C-16—there's protection for trans individuals and non-binary gender individuals in law now. We have a national housing strategy with a carve-out set aside specifically for women and girls, especially those fleeing violence and abuse. There is a gender violence plan to address and prevent this. We have a comprehensive national action plan to address and prevent human trafficking and we have a poverty reduction plan.

The small but mighty agency that was Status of Women Canada, thanks to the advocacy of so many across the country, is now a full and equal department under the law, with the same authorities, responsibilities and powers as other departments. It is now the law of the land for a federal budget to have an intersectional gendered lens applied to it.

These are some of the ways that we have made significant progress. We have built on the foundation that those before us have built, and we need to build upon it further.

This is an important year. We've discussed it. It's considered a super year for gender equality. It marks 75 years since the United Nations was established. It marks 50 years since the Royal Commission on the Status of Women in Canada began its historic and significant work. It marks 25 years since the platform for action was agreed upon by the international community, the most comprehensive blueprint for gender equality. It's been 25 years since gender-based analysis started to be applied here within the federal Government of Canada. We have five years to look back on sustainable development goals, and a recognition, too, that we have five years to go until the next review of the sustainable development goals happen, and 10 years until the sustainable development that the international community agreed to are due.

This is an important year. The way to move forward, I remain convinced, is through partnership and by empowering grassroots and local leadership in communities across the country. One of the ways that we've done that is by enhancing our investments in women's organizations and equality-seeking organizations. Some 630 organizations have received over $250 million over the past five years from only my department. That doesn't include other government departments. This allows them to build capacity to sustain their efforts, to address and prevent gender-based violence, to enhance women's economic security and work to get more women and diverse individuals in positions of power, like the ones around this table.

The year 2020 is also significant because the calls for justice, the response to the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, are due. This is one of those initiatives that didn't exist in the past five years. There was no national inquiry. Now we find ourselves as a country working hard to operationalize reconciliation. Recognizing that whether the work is to advance indigenous women and girls' rights and well-being or other women and diverse populations, the work will be difficult. It will require courageous conversations. It will depend on smart partnerships. I'm really grateful that our constituents have given us the power and the opportunity to be here in Ottawa at this critical moment in time to move our communities and our countries forward.

I'll wrap up there, Madam Chair. I know you'll be asking me about supplementary estimates and I'm happy to talk about those adjustments.

11:10 a.m.

Conservative

The Chair Conservative Karen Vecchio

Excellent.

Is there anything from the department or will we just move forward?

Wonderful. Thank you very much.

11:10 a.m.

Liberal

Maryam Monsef Liberal Peterborough—Kawartha, ON

I hear you have them for about an hour after me

11:10 a.m.

Conservative

The Chair Conservative Karen Vecchio

It's a half an hour after that.

11:10 a.m.

Liberal

Maryam Monsef Liberal Peterborough—Kawartha, ON

Be nice to them.

11:10 a.m.

Conservative

The Chair Conservative Karen Vecchio

Ms. Monsef, are you here until noon?

11:10 a.m.

Liberal

Maryam Monsef Liberal Peterborough—Kawartha, ON

Yes.

11:10 a.m.

Conservative

The Chair Conservative Karen Vecchio

Excellent.

This committee will be going for an hour and a half, with 30 minutes of committee business to follow.

We'll be starting our round of questioning. Just a reminder that it's six minutes each to each party to start.

The first round begins with six minutes to Raquel.

11:10 a.m.

Conservative

Raquel Dancho Conservative Kildonan—St. Paul, MB

Thank you, Minister, for being here today.

I would like to discuss with you women employed in untraditional sectors, something you know much about. I appreciate the focus in your opening remarks on the importance of gender-based analysis for women, particularly in untraditional sectors.

I was interested to learn as I was researching your department and the work you've done about a program your department undertook several years ago called the mining and refining for women pilot project. It was a 30-month mentorship project, with the goal to retain and advance women's employment in non-traditional roles by Teck Resources' zinc and lead mining operation in Trail, B.C. As you know, women are not well represented in the trades, particularly in mining. This project, funded by your department, was looking to help women close that gender equality gap. It received resoundingly positive feedback from the women involved. I was very encouraged to see that your department takes women in untraditional sectors very seriously and that this is really in line with your mandate to improve gender equality in Canada. I appreciate, with this program, that your department wants women to succeed in mining.

Given all the success women had with this project, I'm curious to hear your thoughts on the Teck Frontier mine. The project presented a mass of high-paying employment opportunities for women, for local first nations and women in the mining sector. Of course, it's well understood that the decision on the Teck Frontier mine was to be made by cabinet and by you this past Tuesday, February 25. Although we know the project did not go forward, and we were given notice two days' prior, your government had the proposal since July 2019.

Can you provide to the committee the gender-based analysis plus for the Teck Frontier mine project?

11:10 a.m.

Liberal

Maryam Monsef Liberal Peterborough—Kawartha, ON

Raquel, I wish you all the best in your first term here in Ottawa. I'm sure you're going to make a world of difference.

The Teck decision to pull out was their decision and, as we all have been discussing over the past few weeks, it must have been a very difficult decision.

I can tell you that they had done an excellent job with their indigenous consultations, and that is a model for future projects to move forward on.

On the initiatives around women's economic security, some of the pilots you mentioned—

11:10 a.m.

Conservative

Raquel Dancho Conservative Kildonan—St. Paul, MB

I'm sorry, Minister, to cut you off.

I just want to know if you can table the gender-based analysis report for the Teck Frontier mine.

11:10 a.m.

Liberal

Maryam Monsef Liberal Peterborough—Kawartha, ON

What came out of the joint panel is available online. Anything that comes out of cabinet—this one isn't one—is, of course, protected by cabinet confidence.

11:10 a.m.

Conservative

Raquel Dancho Conservative Kildonan—St. Paul, MB

Sure.

Can you confirm that you did one?

11:10 a.m.

Liberal

Maryam Monsef Liberal Peterborough—Kawartha, ON

Of course. We do a GBA+ on everything that comes forward to cabinet.

11:10 a.m.

Conservative

Raquel Dancho Conservative Kildonan—St. Paul, MB

Okay, perfect.

11:10 a.m.

Liberal

Maryam Monsef Liberal Peterborough—Kawartha, ON

The Prime Minister has mandated that we all do.

11:10 a.m.

Conservative

Raquel Dancho Conservative Kildonan—St. Paul, MB

I know you're aware that nearly 10,000 jobs were potentially created in Teck including 14 first nations. I'm also certain you're aware that there are over 200,000 people who remain unemployed in the energy sector since your government took office in 2015.

Further, I'm certain you're aware—if not an expert, actually, given your many years as minister of status of women—of the challenges faced by women particularly in regard to family breakdown and the tremendous negative impact these kinds of unemployment numbers have had on people in general, but on women specifically. I'm sure you are an expert in this.

Not only do we know that there are women employed in the energy sector, but for every one energy sector job, five other jobs are created, and many of them are in the service industry, which we know is disproportionately represented by women.

I am confident, given the state of unemployment in our energy sector, that the GBA+ would show that the Teck Frontier mine would have had a very positive impact on the Alberta community and the energy sector in general.

Can you give a brief overview for the committee of what the gender-based analysis said for Teck Frontier?

11:10 a.m.

Liberal

Maryam Monsef Liberal Peterborough—Kawartha, ON

I believe I answered that question already, but I will say that—

11:10 a.m.

Conservative

Raquel Dancho Conservative Kildonan—St. Paul, MB

Was it a positive analysis?

11:10 a.m.

Liberal

Maryam Monsef Liberal Peterborough—Kawartha, ON

—the decision to pull out—

11:10 a.m.

Conservative

Raquel Dancho Conservative Kildonan—St. Paul, MB

For sure, but would it have been a positive impact on them?

11:10 a.m.

Liberal

Maryam Monsef Liberal Peterborough—Kawartha, ON

We have done a gender-based analysis, and you mentioned some numbers. I think it's really important to have those numbers.

Over the past five years, over a million Canadians have been lifted out of poverty and, as you know, poverty is sexist, so women disproportionately benefit from those—

11:15 a.m.

Conservative

Raquel Dancho Conservative Kildonan—St. Paul, MB

I have to move on, Minister. There are just a couple of minutes left, but I wish that you could have shared a little bit more specifically of the positive impact this project would have had, given your tremendous mandate from the Prime Minister . Your mandate letter states that every proposal that comes before cabinet has to have a gender-based analysis, which you're responsible for. I was hoping to have a little bit more from you about the positive or negative impacts of the Teck Frontier one.

Moving on, are you aware of how many of your colleagues have completed the GBA+ training?

11:15 a.m.

Liberal

Maryam Monsef Liberal Peterborough—Kawartha, ON

We have the numbers. My officials can pull them up.

Hundreds of thousands of public servants and political staff, both within the Senate and the House of Commons, have taken the training. I encourage anyone who hasn't yet taken the training to do so. It's available online. It's free of charge, of course, and when you're done, you are provided with a certificate.