Status of Women Committee on Dec. 12th, 2022

[Jenna Sudds, Liberal, Kanata—Carleton, ON]

You referenced that you're excited OSIC will now be available to you, so I wanted an explanation of why that is.

[Christopher Winter]

Excited may be a poor choice of terms, but it is a positive step forward. Obviously, any additional funding we can have to help support safe sport is very welcome. We're severely under-resourced when it comes to safe sport across all of our NSOs, so providing this is a positive step forward. It certainly will mean, from the perspective of our athletes, having an additional level of independence, which we welcome.

[Jenna Sudds, Liberal, Kanata—Carleton, ON]

Thank you very much.

My next question is for Ms. Gassewitz.

One of your recommendations was to listen and the second was to make safe sport a government priority. As we've heard today and I think as you referenced, OSIC was established in June and is just starting to get rolling, which in my mind is a very positive step in showing our commitment to safe sport. I'm wondering if you can share with us what else our government can do to make safe sport a government priority.

[Debra Gassewitz]

Let's build on the experience of watching how concussions have had a huge impact. That was shared a lot because the government kept it a priority. It meant the funding was sustainable so that people could develop programs, implement programs, monitor programs, evaluate and continue to grow. It meant that awareness kept going. It allowed awareness to go through all different avenues and levels of sport—our national and provincial-territorial levels—to our communities so that it could have an impact.

Building on that, I would say the same thing applies here. Going forward, it should not be a one-off thing such that this year this is the topic we're all talking about just because it hit the media. For it to really change and for us to really have an impact on society, I think government keeping it a priority for a longer term is the biggest part. Then you can allow it to go through those natural stages of behaviour change.

Having a one-off, short-term thing is not going to change behaviour. It's going to give a check mark and will give the media a story. To give the long-term investment and allow the different regions, different provinces and different stakeholders to adapt how they need to, government—and that's all governments—needs to say, “Yes, for our community, this is staying a priority.”

At that level, I would say to keep it a priority for the long term, keep the sustainable funding going so it's not just about this year's funding and keep telling the story. Make sure it comes out. Look at the evaluation, be part of the process and implement those changes. Take it as a way of learning. I think everything is an end.

[The Chair, Conservative, Karen Vecchio]

Thank you so much.

We're going to move to Andréanne.

Andréanne, you have six minutes.

[Andréanne Larouche, Bloc, Shefford, QC]

Thank you, Madam Chair.

I thank the witnesses for being with us today to help us understand why victims have no trust in the system, among other things.

Mr. Winter, before we get to other topics, I would ask you to tell me a little bit more about the structure of your organization. Who are the voting members of Athletics Canada?

[Christopher Winter]

The voting members of Athletics Canada are our provincial-territorial member branches.

[Andréanne Larouche, Bloc, Shefford, QC]

Do they hold the balance of power in your sport? If not, who does?

[Christopher Winter]

I'm sorry. I'm not sure I understand the question.

[Andréanne Larouche, Bloc, Shefford, QC]

We've talked about the voting members of Athletics Canada. Who holds the power when it comes to making decisions? We're trying to understand the leadership structure of your organization.

I would also like to ask you how the members of your board of directors are chosen and elected.

[Christopher Winter]

In terms of who holds the balance of power, we have a board of directors who are elected through elections. After some of the governance reviews we've had, we've looked to identify the areas and gaps we may have in our governance to seek out various roles and responsibilities, whether it's in law, marketing or other areas. We're also taking a look at this from a diversity perspective to ensure that the diversity we see on the field of play is represented in the boardroom and that people from all walks of life are represented in the boardroom.

[Andréanne Larouche, Bloc, Shefford, QC]

I would like to go back to how you follow up on reports of abuse, and for you to explain a little bit about the process.

Currently, what is your role following the filing of complaints? How long does it take to resolve situations? What do you do when you are told of sexual misconduct against a complainant?

[Christopher Winter]

As I said, we have a third party commissioner's office that manages those complaints. If a complaint is made to me, the first thing I do is direct it to the commissioner's office. That's the place that receives them. Again, the commissioner's office can receive complaints regarding maltreatment, but it can also hear complaints about athlete agreements, eligibility decisions, issues around representative team selections and funding.

That is managed through an independent process. They have their own staff who manage it. Currently, we have two commissioners—one female, one male—who both have expertise in law. They manage that. It's required that they hire independent investigators to complete an investigation, and then they compile a report. At the very end of the process, that report is submitted to Athletics Canada for posting on the website. Any decisions made in that report are then carried out. We're responsible for following any decisions made in that report.

[Andréanne Larouche, Bloc, Shefford, QC]

Mr. Winter, you're the one funding this office, though. You said so.

Do you understand that the independence of this office could be questioned and that this could lead to a lack of trust from victims?

[Christopher Winter]

Yes, absolutely. We would certainly welcome an independent body to help fund that. However, without that coming in, we're not left with a lot of options. We tried to set up the framework in such a way that it is as independent as we could possibly make it, but without funding coming from an external body, that's simply not possible.

[Andréanne Larouche, Bloc, Shefford, QC]

Mr. Winter, I want to make sure I understand. Are you a signatory to Abuse Free Sport? If so, since when?

[Christopher Winter]

As I mentioned earlier, we will be officially onboarded on April 1, 2023.

[Andréanne Larouche, Bloc, Shefford, QC]

Mr. Winter, do you also feel that, in order to continue to move things forward, you could have put the athletes more at the heart of your decisions?

Have you taken any steps to comply with the Canadian Sport Governance Code?

[Christopher Winter]

I'm sorry, but I don't understand your question. Could you clarify it?

[Andréanne Larouche, Bloc, Shefford, QC]

I'm going to put it another way.

At the moment, athletes are bemoaning the fact that they have not been consulted enough. This is said to be the case as well with regard to the revision of the Canadian Sport Policy, which will be tabled by the minister in February.

The victims are calling for an independent judicial inquiry into sport to really get to the bottom of the situation and allow victims to trust the system again.

I would like to hear your comments on this and on how the victims can be given a hearing.

[The Chair, Conservative, Karen Vecchio]

What I'm going to do, because we have more time, is come back to you, Andréanne, for that question. We'll move over to Leah for her six minutes, and then for your follow-up questions, we'll have time available to you.

Leah, you have six minutes.

[Leah Gazan, NDP, Winnipeg Centre, MB]

Thank you so much.

Thank you to the witnesses for being here today.

My first question is for Mr. Winter. I'm going to read from a CBC article from February 10, 2020, entitled “Athletics Canada Athlete Council says track body failed alleged victim of sexual abuse”. It says:

The Athletics Canada Athlete Council condemned Canada's track and field governing body Monday in the wake of allegations surrounding former national coach Dave Scott-Thomas.

The open letter from the athlete council came two days after former student-athlete Megan Brown came forward in a Globe and Mail story alleging that Scott-Thomas, a former University of Guelph coach, groomed her for a sexual relationship when she was 17.

Athletics Canada said in a statement Saturday that the Globe and Mail report was “deeply disturbing,” but claimed no complaint had been made directly to the national organizing body or its independent commissioner's office.

However, the Athletics Canada Athlete Council, which was founded in 2012 to advocate for athletes within Athletics Canada, said the organization failed to take action when Brown needed its help.

“This inaction and dismissal perpetrated a culture of disempowerment of sex abuse victims,” the athlete council said in the letter. “Furthermore, the continued appraisal of Mr. Scott-Thomas, and denial of any wrongdoing on the part of [Athletics Canada], only reinforced his position of power over the victim[s].”

I share this with you because you mentioned in your testimony that you oversee safe sport policies and governance. Is that correct?

[Christopher Winter]

Yes, I look after the safe sport portfolio, and any governance is obviously shared among the board and—

[Leah Gazan, NDP, Winnipeg Centre, MB]

Have other instances of sexual abuse been reported to you while overseeing safe sport—clearly serious allegations, including this one—where you failed to act?

[Christopher Winter]

I've been in this role for two years. We've had the commissioner's office manage those complaints, and we've seen other complaints of sexual abuse come forward—