Debates of Oct. 24th, 2024

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship

[Paul Chiang, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to subsection 94(1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the 2024 annual report to Parliament on immigration.

Official Languages

[René Arseneault, Liberal, Madawaska—Restigouche, NB]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present today, in both official languages, the sixth report of the Standing Committee on Official Languages entitled “Economic Development of Official Language Minority Communities”. It contains 20 excellent recommendations that would enable the federal government to play a leading role in developing the economic potential of all official language minority communities.

Pursuant to Standing Order 109, the committee requests that the government table a comprehensive response to this report.

[Mario Beaulieu, Bloc, La Pointe-de-l'Île, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. I would seek unanimous consent to present the Bloc Québécois's dissenting opinion.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Greg Fergus]

Is it agreed?

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

[Mario Beaulieu, Bloc, La Pointe-de-l'Île, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I want to say that the Bloc Québécois will be presenting a dissenting opinion. More importantly, I want Quebeckers to know that all of the recommendations in this report are aimed exclusively at supporting the economic development of English-speaking Quebec. That is really unfair and appalling.

We know that the English-speaking community is growing and developing and that it is highly favoured. For French-speaking Quebeckers, who are in the majority in their own state but in the minority in Canada, there is nothing, no offer of support. Despite the new elements that we managed to include in the new federal language law for Quebec and for all official languages support programs, there are only measures to strengthen the anglophone community. Let us remember that these measures are funded in part by the federal taxes that Quebeckers send to Ottawa every year.

The recommendations were all approved by the Liberals, the Conservatives and the NDP, which shows that only the Bloc Québécois is defending French in Quebec and that the only real way to protect our national language going forward is for Quebec to become independent.

Fisheries and Oceans

[Brendan Hanley, Liberal, Yukon, YT]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the 17th report of the Standing Committee on Fisheries and Oceans, entitled “Challenges to the Sustainability of the Yukon Salmon Stocks”. This study and its report examine an issue, the decline of the Yukon River salmon and how we can restore this ecosystem, that is of enormous importance to my constituents in the Yukon.

I thank the clerk of the committee; the many members, Canadians and Yukoners who participated in the study; and the analysts, who made this report possible.

Pursuant to Standing Order 109 of the House of Commons, the committee requests that the government table a comprehensive response to this report.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs

[Patrick Weiler, Liberal, West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the 17th report of the Standing Committee on Indigenous and Northern Affairs, which is in relation to Bill S-16, an act respecting the recognition of the Haida Nation and the Council of the Haida Nation.

The committee has studied the bill and has decided to report the bill back to the House without amendments.

Canadian Heritage

[Sébastien Lemire, Bloc, Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I move that the 12th report of the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage, presented on Wednesday, June 19, be concurred in.

I am rising today to speak to a subject that is at the very heart of our society, and that is safe sport in Canada. Unfortunately, what we are seeing is a broken system that has been allowed to deteriorate over the past three decades.

This debate was launched by the motion I introduced here in the House of Commons about Hockey Canada's actions as part of a reported cover-up of an alleged gang rape by players on the Canadian hockey team in 2018, which was brought to light by an article penned by journalist Rick Westhead. I wanted to start a dialogue on the importance of safety in sports by encouraging us to listen to athletes' experiences with a view to keeping them safer and enhancing their well-being. Numerous experts have shined a light on the systemic problems, and I felt it was important to examine these issues at a higher level. I have led the charge on this, focusing on the need for a review as part of an independent public inquiry, which strikes me as the only solution.

Despite two years of study at the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage, despite the open letters, from gymnasts in particular, despite testimony from many athletes in over 16 sports, including water polo, swimming, soccer, kayaking, rowing, sailing, track and field, curling, fencing, speed skating, figure skating and boxing, and testimony from Canadian Hockey League players who were sexually abused, not to mention articles written by journalists like Rick Westhead, we have seen inaction and lip service, but little in the way of concrete results on the part of this government. The government's do-nothing approach in the face of these issues is alarming, and I am here to draw attention to the situation.

Recommendation 20 in the report calls for the launching of an independent public inquiry. We must get to the bottom of this. An independent public inquiry is still and definitely needed to delve deeply into the systemic problems affecting Canadian sports. We must understand these abuses and shortcomings that have arisen and persisted for such a long time. The inquiry's scope must not be limited to individual cases, but rather extend to the governance structures that have allowed these deficiencies to arise.

It is essential that athletes, coaches and all other people involved in sports be free to testify without fear of reprisals, including financial ones. Such an approach is needed to restore trust and ensure that concrete measures are put in place to protect those who dedicate their lives to sport in pursuit of their passion. Ignoring the call for an inquiry remains a serious mistake and encourages continued indifference toward problems that deeply affect our society. I would remind members that the launching of an independent public inquiry was favoured by over 95% of witnesses, including the Canadian Olympic Committee and the organization Own The Podium, which spoke out in favour of such an inquiry.

I would like to raise an important point about the future of sport in Canada commission, much trumpeted by the Minister of Sport and Physical Activity. I want to make it clear that this voluntary commission is merely an advisory body, with no real authority to make significant changes. We must not be misled by the minister's empty words on this small-minded initiative. Instead of taking concrete measures to fix the pressing problems facing us, the government seems content to pursue this sham voluntary consultation.

What is more, the fact that the minister has announced that she will not be seeking re-election sends a troubling signal. This decision simply reinforces the idea that her commitment to sports was merely a means of playing out the clock, with no genuine desire to resolve the issues we are concerned about. If the government truly wishes to advance sports in Canada, it must stop hiding behind hollow speeches and take bold decisions. We need strong leadership and concrete initiatives, not some phony commitment. It is as though the minister had been installed to protect her own system.

It is also important to recall that the minister had the power to better align, through legislative means, safety issues in sports with questions of justice, coercion and grooming of athletes. Instead, for a year and a half we have had radio silence, and that is troubling. It is imperative that we discontinue mediation in cases where the events in question amount to criminal abuse. The safety of our athletes, especially child athletes, must trump any other consideration.

We must reinforce the message that it is essential to report these instances of abuse to law enforcement. Sports must be a safe space for all, and abusive behaviour must not be trivialized or concealed. Victims must feel supported when they report this behaviour, rather than being forced into silence by procedures that leave them vulnerable. It is incumbent upon the government to protect children in sports, and that starts with tangible, legislative action that reflects a genuine commitment to their safety. Ignoring these issues is not just negligence, but a danger to our collective future—hence the urgent need for a truly independent public inquiry.

It is alarming that when cases of abuse were reported to Sport Canada, departmental officials did nothing for years. There was no follow-up or investigation within the community. That is unacceptable. This lack of an active response not only exposes the victims to situations of ongoing vulnerability, but it also sends a horrible message on the culture of impunity that seems to be prevalent in sports. That message is all the more troubling because we discovered, thanks to the study by the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage, whose report we are debating today, that certain national sports bodies accessed funds to cover up cases of abuse. This practice raises serious ethical concerns, as was shown by Hockey Canada and Soccer Canada. This behaviour reinforces the perception that these organizations are more concerned about their image than about the safety of their athletes.

We also learned that they had shelved reports commissioned by independent third parties, reports that pointed to safety and abuse problems. When something is not in their interest, they put it on a shelf to gather dust. How can we hope for true societal change if this information is ignored and set aside? There is no mechanism for monitoring this practice, opening the door to a culture of silence in national sports bodies. This has to stop. We need total transparency and clear accountability mechanisms to ensure that all instances of abuse are not just reported, but treated with the seriousness they deserve.

In the face of these serious deficiencies, we called on the Auditor General of Canada to familiarize herself with the file and conduct an in-depth examination of Canadian sport policy. This is essential if we are to ensure that the systemic problems facing us are brought to light and treated appropriately. An independent analysis will not only assess the effectiveness of existing measures, but will also make concrete recommendations on how to enhance safety and integrity in the sports world.

It is high time that we take these issues seriously and act on a factual basis. The investigation by the Auditor General, as called for in recommendations 3 and 7 of this report, can also be leveraged to encourage the government to adopt necessary reforms and implement rigorous monitoring mechanisms. We need truth, not half measures. Public trust in our sport organizations depends on our ability to confront these realities head-on and to commit to building a better future for our athletes and our young people.

The Minister of Sport and Physical Activity played a key role in designing Canada's sports system. She must have the courage and humility to recognize her serious mistakes and commit to making the necessary corrections so that, one day, we will not have to confront the need to remedy these injustices.

How can the former chair of the board of directors of the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport, or CCES, be objective? Could this be a way of sweeping under the rug the problems in the Office of the Sport Integrity Commissioner, or OSIC?

How can the former adviser to the director general of Sport Canada deliver reforms on measures that she herself put in place? How can she justify all those trips around the world she took on the taxpayer's dime, at a time when the sports system was in such bad shape?

How was the Minister of Sport and Physical Activity able to award an untendered contract for CCES to take over the OSIC without any prior analysis? She is the architect and guardian of what has gone wrong in sports for some 20 years and of this culture of silence that protects the perpetrators rather than the victims.

I would also like to address the financial challenges and problems of access and inclusion in the sports community. The government promised investments, but where did this money really go? Budget cuts to sports programs, both provincially and nationally, had devastating consequences. Amateur sports clubs, schools and sports associations are on the front lines of this crisis.

There are also glaring regional inequalities. While large cities get new infrastructure, rural communities like those in Abitibi—Témiscamingue are still fighting for basic facilities. Young people in these regions are being left behind and are denied access to potentially transformational sports. To ignore these inequalities is to sacrifice the future of our young people and maintain the inequalities.

Let us talk now about access and inclusion. Sports should be a universal right, but in reality it is a privilege for only some. Registration fees, equipment costs and travel expenses for athletes and their families are barriers that many cannot overcome. While the government talks about inclusion, youth from underprivileged communities are left watching from the sidelines.

Moreover, minorities and persons with disabilities are often invisible in our sports programming. We hear the talk about equity, but the figures speak for themselves. Very few actual initiatives have been put in place to ensure that everyone gets to play. The government's indifference to these issues is unacceptable.

An article in La Presse is timely. I presented the case of Témiscamingue to the office of the Minister of Sport and Physical Activity. People do not have access to a swimming pool within a 100-kilometre radius, and government programs are not adapted to the reality of remote communities.

Let us turn now to governance. Sports federations must be models of transparency and integrity, but that is not the case. In the study carried out after my motion was adopted, we saw harassment and mistreatment scandals within these organizations, and we learned that the government took no concrete measures. It is high time to demand accountability. Media pressure and public indignation have done more to change the system than the minister herself has done.

The performance-at-all-costs culture cannot justify the sacrifice of athletes' well-being. The government's lofty words are no longer enough. We need concrete action to reform the system and to ensure a safe, respectful environment for our athletes. Failure to act now will open the door to further abuses.

Besides, should sports in Canada not fall under Health Canada, which aims to promote healthy living, rather than Canadian Heritage?

How to justify the presence of coaches with active criminal records at the Paris Olympics and the Coaching Association of Canada's failure to react? How to explain the drone scandal, the only scandal at the Paris Olympics? This sowed doubt among some athletes, who had to bear the brunt of complaints from the other teams.

How to explain the fact that Own the Podium still imposes its choice of coach for Canada's women's soccer team? What about the cost overruns of the Canadian competitions for FIFA 2026? This will be a scandal for Canada. How much has the federal government spent to ensure security for these events? The Liberal government will not even be there to defend itself.

Can the Minister of Sport and Physical Activity rise and tell us that all of the national sports organizations will make changes to the membership of their board of directors and meet the criteria for receiving support from Sport Canada as announced in May 2023?

Can the Minister of Sport and Physical Activity assure us that Soccer Canada and Hockey Canada have no confidentiality agreements concerning reports of abuse, mistreatment or toxic environments? What is the situation within Gymnastics Canada?

Do all our national sports organizations have a firm serving as an independent third party, which was itself at the centre of the abuse and cover-ups? Can the minister explain what kind of scrutiny she has exercised over the wrongdoing, abuse and complaints from athletes who make their way through the sport system along with the judicial system? How many misdeeds have not been reported to the police?

Fortunately, today, outside the realm of Sport Canada and this minister, sport is often seen as a matter of national pride, and far less in terms of health and wellness. I need to point that out. We celebrate our athletes' success on the world stage, but we should not ignore the real problems in the sports community. Athletes should not be seen as mere commodities, as tools to enhance our image and boost national pride. This utilitarian vision exposes our youth to all sorts of abuse, whether physical, psychological, emotional or financial.

By prioritizing performance over well-being, we are creating an environment conducive to abuse, where victims' voices are silenced, and where athletes' physical and mental health are often sacrificed on the altar of victory.

Athletes, especially the young and vulnerable, should feel supported and protected, yet their value is reduced to the medals and trophies they can win for us. We are neglecting the true benefits of sport, namely, personal development, team spirit, sportsmanship, the promotion of healthy lifestyle habits and pushing one's limits.

We need to shift our discourse when it comes to sports. Instead of focusing solely on performance, we need to promote sport as a vector for health, inclusion and personal development. That is how we will protect our athletes and offer them a secure and fulfilling future.

Lastly, it is imperative that we reform the governance of our sports federations. We need to implement mechanisms for transparency and accountability. These are not promises, but systemic changes needed to restore the trust of our athletes and our constituents.

Also, who in our sports organizations are legally and ethically responsible for ensuring athletes' safety and wellness? This fundamental question has yet to be answered and deserves urgent attention. Sports federations, clubs and the government have a role to play in protecting those who dedicate their life to pursuing their passion. It is high time we took a look at the reasons why we keep avoiding this crucial subject. Having the courage to look back at the past 20 years of wilful blindness is a necessary step in understanding how we got here, which is why we need an independent public inquiry.

We need to acknowledge that, in Canada, the government does not take its responsibilities seriously. It is unacceptable that there could have been abuse without concrete measures being taken to prevent it. Our laws and policies must be adapted to establish clear standards on safety and well-being. Organizations must be held accountable for their actions, as well as for their failure to act. We need to commit to change. As long as we continue to turn a blind eye, we will imperil the future of our sports and the safety of our athletes.

We also need to encourage private companies to invest in community sports, but never to the detriment of ethics. Sponsors should have no influence over the decisions made by sports federations or clubs. We need a clear regulatory framework to make sure that sporting values such as fairness remain paramount.

Lastly, it is imperative that we reform the governance of our sports federations. We need to put mechanisms in place to ensure transparency and accountability. These are not promises, but systemic changes needed to restore the trust of our athletes and fellow citizens. This includes the creation of independent ethics committees to investigate complaints and scandals.

In conclusion, we cannot remain passive in the face of these problems. Indifference is not an option. The government's rhetoric is no longer sufficient. We need concrete measures, commitment and determination.

Change is possible, but it depends on our collective will to question the status quo. I encourage my colleagues to act, to take a stand and to ensure that every young person, regardless of their position, has an opportunity to dream, play and fulfill their potential through sport.

I would like to conclude by thanking the key players in this study, which, I would point out, took almost two years. I would like to thank Jessica, Kim, Rob, Kristin, Amélia, Ryan, Kelly, Randy, Whitney, professors Ross and McFarlane, Judge Aquilina, Judge Cromwell, Melanie, Sylvain, Janine, Quinn, Sophie, Christine, Andrea, Kiara, Myriam, the members of the Standing Committee on the Status of Women, the members of the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage and the former minister of sport, now the Minister of Canadian Heritage. As a point of interest, on May 11, she herself, as Minister of Sport, on behalf of the federal government, undertook to conduct an independent public inquiry into sport. Unfortunately, since she was promoted to Canadian Heritage, her successor has ignored the clear will of the witnesses in the study.

I would like to extend my warmest thanks to Amélie, my parliamentary assistant, as well as to Jean-François. I would also like to thank some of my parliamentary colleagues. Exceptionally, I will cite their first names: Andréanne, Kirsty, Peter, the members of the Conservative party, including their critic Richard, and the Liberals, in particular Adam. I thank them for their collaboration. I think that we made significant progress together. However, there is still much to be done.

[Kevin Waugh, Conservative, Saskatoon—Grasswood, SK]

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the member for the Bloc, who spent hours, along with other Conservatives and me, on the safe sport committee. It has been a failure since day one. The government is clearly trying to support Sport Canada, which has never done its job; it never checks in with the 62 national sport organizations. That was evident with the sexual assault charge against Hockey Canada in London, Ontario in 2018. Then the government added the OSIC. That is another layer of bureaucracy that is now doing the work that Sport Canada should have been doing all along.

To the member from the Bloc who put this concurrence motion forward today, what are his thoughts on what the government should do with Sport Canada? My own thoughts are to disband it altogether.

[Sébastien Lemire, Bloc, Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I really want to thank my colleague.

I think there is something that Scott Smith and all the executives at Hockey Canada did not see coming in their great Calgary tower—which was probably one of the most inaccessible rights, and where Hockey Canada people were above it all. What they did not see coming was a little guy from Abitibi—Témiscamingue, a big fan of hockey and social justice, as well as the support of colleagues who love hockey. I really want to thank my Conservative colleague, who was a strong ally in the analysis of this situation.

Now Sport Canada needs to do some soul searching. Right now, institutions are protecting institutions. At some point there will have to be external scrutiny and things will have to be made public. That is the only way to end the culture of silence. It is not up to Sport Canada to conduct a review of Sport Canada. There needs to be a public, independent inquiry. We need an independent judge to make recommendations, someone who can call for the production of documents, much like the House is calling for documents. That is how we found out that there are funds within the funds, that there is wrongdoing, that there are people who are protecting themselves and hiding, and that there are corrupt boards of directors.

That is what we need to do to shed light on the whole situation. We need an independent public inquiry.

[Kevin Lamoureux, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, it is interesting. The Conservatives stand up to provide comment on the report. What do they say? They want to get rid of Sport Canada. Why am I not surprised? When we talk about Conservatives, all they want to do is take things apart, cut, cut, cut.

There was the ministerial response to the report. Has the hon. member actually read the ministerial response and if the answer to that is yes, is there any aspect of that ministerial response that he supports?

[Sébastien Lemire, Bloc, Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC]

Mr. Speaker, obviously, I did do my homework and read the response.

The problem is that the minister is talking about a voluntary commission. Those are fine words, but, when we are talking about meaningful measures, we should be putting the success of the future of sport in Canada into the hands of independent people. This cannot be handled by the individuals within this dying government.

Meaningful measures should have been taken to leave a legacy, but that is not the path the minister has chosen.

[Niki Ashton, NDP, Churchill—Keewatinook Aski, MB]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his hard work on this very important issue. The NDP supports the idea of an independent public inquiry.

I know that the member is very passionate about the issue of ethics in sport. Why did his Bloc Québécois colleague vote with the Liberals this week to block a study on the soccer drone scandal that hurt our athletes and our international reputation in soccer?

Why did the Bloc Québécois support the Liberals to cover up what is happening at Soccer Canada and to prevent us from stamping out a culture of spying that goes against the ethics on which sport in our country should be based?

[Sébastien Lemire, Bloc, Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for her commitment to social justice in sports and elsewhere. I think her sensitivity has moved a lot of causes forward in this Parliament.

As for her question concerning the motion, I completely agree with the substance of her remarks and the things she mentioned. I also want to say, as the member pointed out, that despite the penalty handed down to the Canadian team, the players had nothing to do with what happened, yet they are paying the price for the misbehaviour of Canada Soccer and Sport Canada.

The reality is that sometimes things in politics focus on procedure and priorities, but I am sure that this study could be revisited in due course.

[Martin Champoux, Bloc, Drummond, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I am sorely tempted to answer my NDP colleague's question myself, since I sit on the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage and there were many good reasons not to support the motion in the form in which it was presented. However, I will let my colleague from Abitibi—Témiscamingue handle it, because he did such a great job on the issue of safe sport at the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage.

Since the beginning of this study, since the beginning of the scandals that have been brought to light, the Bloc Québécois has done an outstanding job, through my colleague from Abitibi—Témiscamingue and his team, among others. I just wanted to point that out.

However, at the end of the day, the Bloc Québécois made only one significant recommendation. In my opinion, it was a recommendation that would be easy to adopt, support and implement, and it is essential for improving safety in professional and amateur sports throughout Quebec and Canada.

I would like to hear my colleague from Abitibi—Témiscamingue reiterate the importance of this recommendation in the report he worked so hard on.

[Sébastien Lemire, Bloc, Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague, the member from Drummond, for his patience.

Why is the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage in charge of sport? It has a lot of other issues to deal with. Maybe the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage is too big, and we should consider creating a standing committee on sport to investigate these issues that affect our own and other countries' national sports associations.

This being said, there is one fundamental recommendation, which I mentioned. It is to launch an independent public inquiry that can make recommendations that basically have force of law. This would be different from a voluntary commission that will simply tell us to read the report that is on the shelf because there are good ideas in it.

The Bloc Québécois also submitted a supplementary report. Although the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage's report contained more than 20 recommendations, which is a huge number, we added several pages in the Bloc Québécois's supplementary report because we need to get to the bottom of these sport scandals and make sure that no young person or athlete is left behind.

[Adam van Koeverden, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Environment and Climate Change and to the Minister of Sport and Physical Activity]

Mr. Speaker, I will have a speech in a few minutes. Before I get there, I would like to ask my friend and colleague from Abitibi—Témiscamingue a brief question.

The member seems to have temporary amnesia with respect to all the progress we have made collectively, and I think he should take credit for some of that. We have agreed that abuse in sport ought not to be a partisan issue and that, when we make collective progress, we will make it together under a team Canada approach. We have invested in community sport to an unprecedented degree, with $75 million over the last couple of years, to inspire young kids and make sure there is an inclusive sport system right across this country.

We stood up the Office of the Sport Integrity Commissioner. It has the tools and resources to adjudicate cases, making sure that we get to the bottom of abuse and that abusive coaches and individuals are kicked out of the sport system. We have made incredible progress. The evidence of that is really clear.

Will the member not acknowledge that he has been part of that progress?

[Sébastien Lemire, Bloc, Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC]

Mr. Speaker, yes, we have had many debates in the House and elsewhere. I have asked him questions whenever I had the opportunity, perhaps every two months or so, to get to the bottom of this. We know all about the things he mentioned. However, the federal government's real strategy is to hide behind a voluntary investigation, a voluntary commission. The reality is that the government refused to investigate fully. For me, the question remains the same: What does the government have to hide?

Parliament took one position, and the government took another. The minister herself made a commitment on behalf of the government, but no concrete action has been taken. An independent public inquiry has not been launched. Canada could have been a model for the rest of the world. Canada could have gotten to the bottom of this matter, as it did with doping in the 1980s. It could have become a world leader on this, as it did with the World Anti-Doping Agency. Instead, Canada chose to lag behind.

[John Nater, Conservative, Perth—Wellington, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I find it interesting that the Liberals are offering such a strong defence of Sport Canada. Here are the facts: Senior officials at Sport Canada, a government agency, knew about the sexual assault allegations at Hockey Canada on June 26, 2018, and they did nothing. They knew about them for four years before they did anything.

Would my colleague from the Bloc agree that the government failed by sitting on these allegations for more than four years?

[Sébastien Lemire, Bloc, Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC]

Mr. Speaker, my colleague from Perth—Wellington was an ally on the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage when we studied the Hockey Canada case. I remember how hard he worked, so I am appealing to him today. If there is a change of government, which could happen sooner rather than later, I hope that he will take on the responsibility, on behalf of his political party, of making sure that there is an independent public inquiry. I hope that his party will vote to concur in the report, including recommendation 20, which calls on the government to launch an independent public inquiry.

[Adam van Koeverden, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Environment and Climate Change and to the Minister of Sport and Physical Activity]

Mr. Speaker, it is a real honour to stand in the House this morning to talk about an issue that is so close to my heart. I have been an athlete my whole life, although, when I was a young boy, I did not believe in myself. I did not think that I could become an athlete. The great coaches at the Burloak Canoe Club gave me the skills and the confidence necessary to achieve my dreams in athletics. Thanks to them, I am able to stand in the House. I honestly do not think I would be here in the House of Commons if it were not for all the institutions that support athletes across this country. It is a huge honour and privilege for me to be able to continue to support those institutions to make sure they are even better.

Today, I would first like to thank all the members of the committee, who have helped the government create such progress over the last four years. I was first asked to work on the safe sport issue by the then minister of sport, the member for Etobicoke North. That was back in 2017, a year after I retired from the national kayak team after 18 years.

I am very proud to have joined a woman whom we celebrated last night at the Order of Sport awards, Dr. Guylaine Demers. She is a researcher, an advocate, an athlete, a coach and a professor at Laval in Quebec. Dr. Demers has empowered generations of students, coaches, athletes, administrators and people like me to make sports a safer, more equitable and more welcoming place. She is a former high-performance basketball player and coach, and she has become a driving force for gender equity and safety in sport, right across Canada and around the world. She typically works as a volunteer. She was the chair of the gender equity task force for the then minister of sport when I joined in 2017. She is currently the president of Égale Action, Quebec's association for the advancement of women in sport, and she is an active member of the Canadian Olympic committee's Sport Inclusion Task Force. Last night, very deservedly, she was inducted into the Order of Sport, Canada's only sports hall of fame.

I would also like to take a moment to thank every single witness for their brave testimony at the heritage committee over this very challenging period of time; some old wounds were reopened, and some very important conversations were had. I know it was challenging for a lot of people, including members of Parliament who joined those committees. On behalf of the government and the sport movement here in Canada, I would like to offer our deep thanks to every single witness; the witnesses were brave in coming forward and courageous in giving testimony.

This past summer, Canadians from coast to coast to coast tuned in to cheer on team Canada at the Paris Olympic and Paralympic games in Paris. They cheered on athletes such as Nicholas Bennett, also there last night at the Order of Sport awards, who made history by securing Canada's first gold medal of the games, then followed it up with another gold and a silver medal; Brent Lakatos, with his incredible speed on the tracks, who secured multiple podium finishes; and Aurélie Rivard, who continues to make a big splash and secured three medals at the Paralympic Games.

Team Canada athletes are the pride of their communities. When Canadians come together to celebrate their hometown heroes, we see a testament to the unifying power of sport. These athletes show us what is possible and inspire the next generation of Olympic and Paralympic heroes. It is not just that; rather, when athletes come home with medals, we also see a rise in the registrations at clubs right across the country. It is an inspiring thing to watch Canadians perform on the world stage. I can speak from experience. Down at the Burloak Canoe Club, whenever we had success at the Olympics, registration was always through the roof in September.

These moments of triumph and perseverance unite us as a country. While Conservatives seek to divide us and destroy the institutions that support Canadians, Canadians of all political stripes unite to cheer team Canada on.

However, more than being just a unifying force, sport must be grounded in human rights. This means making sure that everyone, regardless of ability, gender, identity or background, has the same access to safe and welcoming sport experiences. Unfortunately, that is not the case everywhere across the country or around the world. Back in 2006-07, I started working in sport development with organizations such as Right To Play. It uses sport to unify people and to rebuild after countries and communities have been affected by war, poverty and disease.

Our challenges here in Canada are different, but they are important to address. I would like to single out some organizations, such as Spirit North, which brings sport to first nations communities, primarily in western Canada. I am proud that our community sport initiative has helped to fund some of that great work. I would give Beckie Scott, a former Olympic champion in cross-country skiing, a shout-out. She is the founder of that organization, which brings sport to many kids, and they enjoy it very much.

Back in 2022, Canadians were shocked and dismayed to hear revelations of alleged sexual assaults by members of the 2017-18 world junior hockey team. Over time, more survivors came forward to speak about various types of abuse at all levels of sport, in other sports and across other sport disciplines.

This abuse should never have happened. It has no place in our sport system, any system or our country. Nowhere does abuse have a place: not on our fields, not in our rinks, not in the locker rooms, not in corporate Canada, not in education, not in the arts and not in politics. Abuse is wrong.

Those systems and those abuses of power resulted from a lack of accountability, from a culture of silence and, too often, from a desire to win at all costs. The reckoning that we now see in hockey and across the sport system is the result of brave survivors coming forward to share their lived experiences. It takes a lot of strength to stand up and share those horrifying experiences. Once again, I thank them for their courage.

Because of that courage, we can learn. We can better protect children. We can work to improve Canada's sport systems. We can believe them. We are listening to them every single day, and we are supporting long-term, meaningful changes that make our sport system safer.

Many stories were shared at the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage or at the Standing Committee on the Status of Women. I thank the members of both committees for their work in terms of all the recommendations that they have made. We support these reports. Indeed, the government has already acted on the majority of the recommendations.

We are standing with survivors to implement long-term, meaningful changes to improve governance, enhance accountability, increase transparency and apply funding. This is a really important thing. We cannot expect a system to develop and implement new practices and policies without properly funding those organizations. We are demanding increased transparency and, ultimately, delivering a safer sport system for all Canadians. We have made remarkable progress over the last six or seven years.

I would like to take a moment now to highlight some of these actions. Most recently, in June 2022, the Sport Dispute Resolution Centre of Canada launched its abuse-free sport program. This program prevents and addresses maltreatment in sport by offering a wide range of resources, mental health supports and services for sport participants.

Since April 2023, our government has required all federally funded sport organizations to be signatories of the abuse-free sport program, including services of the Office of the Sport Integrity Commissioner. This flies in direct contravention to what my friend and colleague from the Bloc Québécois has said.

It is not optional. This is a mandatory system. This is obligatory for all national sport organizations that receive federal funding. The commissioner administers the Universal Code of Conduct to Prevent and Address Maltreatment in Sport, or UCCMS. They oversee a complaint management process. They regularly commission independent investigations. They maintain a registry of sanctions, and they monitor compliance of sport organizations.

Once again, I would like to say that this is mandatory, obligatory for all national sport organizations. This has been a process of learning and implementing a brand new system. This institution has integrity, funding and the resources necessary to implement these new policies, and they are working.

If sport organizations do not participate, they simply do not get federal funding. That is how it works. It is as simple as that.

Just now, the Conservatives recommend that we burn it all down, that we weaken and destroy institutions and systems that are currently protecting athletes. I was a part of that sport system for two decades. There were times when I found it frustrating, when I wrote letters to Sport Canada and to my member of Parliament. To be honest, I did not see progress for decades. I did not see progress when I wrote to my member of Parliament in 1999, when I was 17 and had problems with the selections committee, or in 2008.

Recently, because we have athletes in the government and in other parties who know the sport system and want to collaborate with athletes from across the country, we have made tremendous progress. I am not the only one saying that. Dr. Guylaine Demers has been doing this work for 25 years. Last night, she was directly asked what she has seen. Her response was that we must keep going, but we have seen remarkable progress.

When we see headlines about athletes being protected by a system that now has integrity, strength and resources, the progress is something to acknowledge and, at times, even celebrate. Again, the Conservatives want to burn it all down.

Through these funding agreements, we have also prohibited national sport organizations from restricting the rights of athletes and sport participants under the UCCMS. We also prohibit any contract, policy, procedure or action from restricting athletes under this code of conduct. This is a new code of conduct. It has been developed. It is rigorous. It is world class. Other countries are following suit. That is good because a lot of these athletes compete internationally and train internationally. It is important for us to ensure that this system is adopted by other countries, particularly peer nations with similar challenges.

The process is a bit complicated, but the bottom line is that athletes can no longer be muzzled by non-disclosure agreements. This is essential. Every athlete needs to sign an agreement when they get funding from their national sport organization or through Sport Canada. I will be honest that in the past, as a two-decade national team athlete, sometimes it seemed a bit burdensome. Sometimes it seemed as though we were being told what we could and could not say, and that is over. I am very proud of the government for taking action on that.

Last March we also launched the abuse-free sport registry. It provides a searchable database of participants subject to the UCCMS whose eligibility to participate in sport or to coach has in some way been restricted due to provisional measures and sanctions. It is a tool for athletes, parents and organizations to make informed and safe sport choices.

Looking to longer-term solutions, last spring we launched the Future of Sport in Canada Commission. Through a trauma-informed approach, this independent commission is seeking to learn from the experiences of victims, survivors, experts, academics, parents and coaches. The process will bring these experiences to light. It will help identify the causes and impacts and will help determine how to move and how to improve the sport system in Canada.

I can say right now that it will not be by burning it all down and applying some cowboy approach to the sport system in Canada. We know that is what the Conservatives want to do with broadcasting by burning down the CBC and selling it off for parts. We know that they are against the Public Health Agency of Canada. We know that they, just like Doug Ford, want to burn down institutions, resulting in weakening Canada and making it poorer.

That is not what we are going to do. We are going to keep trying to strengthen our institutions. We are going to ensure that there is more rigour in the system. We are going to properly fund our institutions and we are going to make sure they have the resources, because if nothing is measured, then nothing will be managed. That is what the Conservatives do not understand: If we do not measure something, we cannot manage something. Therefore we are measuring the challenges, applying resources and putting in place leadership and expertise to confront the challenges head-on; we are not ignoring them, which seems to be what the Conservatives want to do.

I want to clarify briefly our decision to launch a commission rather than a public inquiry. Our government spoke to survivors, athlete groups, external experts, the Canadian Women's Foundation and the Canadian Centre for Child Protection, among many other experts. We looked at other commissions in Canada and around the world, and at other public inquiries, to inform the structure this one would take on. We chose the commission because it prioritizes the voices of survivors to improve safe sport.

A public inquiry would have retraumatized victims by requiring testimony under oath or by subjecting them to subpoenas and cross-examination. That is not productive. It is not helpful, not trauma-informed and not the type of progress we need. We will not force people to relive their trauma. We believe survivors. We do not need to question them or call into question their integrity. We want to make the system better; we do not want to reopen old wounds.

Given that sport is a shared jurisdiction between municipal, regional, territorial and provincial governments and jurisdictions, a public inquiry would have required months of negotiating with provinces. I have been to a couple of FPT meetings, and they can be really, really challenging to develop consensus in. Canada is a great country, but we have a lot of various jurisdictions and sometimes it is challenging to get everybody at the table at the same time agreeing on one thing; therefore we would probably still be waiting for it to start, but with the commission, the work is already under way.

With that in mind, I encourage anyone with experience in sport who wishes to participate in the commission to do so. It is currently open to input. We want to hear from people. We want to make the system better and we know they do too. We know that Canadians love sport, physical activity and recreation. This is not a partisan issue; it is about building the Canada we love and about making sure that sport, physical activity and recreation are available to anybody who wants to participate. We want an open-door policy and we want to ensure that everybody has an opportunity to engage with the commission.

Despite all these efforts, we know that there is still more work to be done. Like a country, a sport system is never complete. We have to lay bricks every single day to ensure that our sport system improves, encourages people to get involved and is as safe as possible. This past summer, the minister launched the ministerial athlete advisory committee to put athletes at the heart of decision-making about sport, and I could not be more proud of this effort.

The minister is also establishing an international integrity work group to promote a unified approach to sport integrity globally, including safe sport, because, like I said, sport is an international concern. Coaches are coming in from other countries. Our coaches are going to work in other countries. Our athletes are going to compete in other places and train elsewhere, and we want to make sure that the global community is following suit.

Our government is in the process of developing a sport integrity framework; through these efforts, we are working with sport organizations and also holding them accountable. I would like to reiterate that none of these things are optional whatsoever, as my friend and colleague from the Bloc pointed out; they are mandatory and obligatory. They are challenging. The system has rigour. Organizations have to do training and adopt new policies. They have to ask all of their coaches, participants, umpires and every single volunteer to do that training.

I will give an example. This past summer, I competed at the national canoe kayak championships. I was on the national team for 18 years. I could not get into the boat until I had done a 15-minute survey online. I sat down in a chair and did the survey. I learned some stuff. I completed the training and submitted it with my signature, and then I was allowed to compete at the national championships.

It was my 25th national championships, but because of the new rigorous measures, every single participant needs to be accountable. They have to demonstrate that they have the interest and the willingness to learn. I have been participating in sport my whole life, and I learned something through that process. I am proud of that work. I showed my coach my phone afterward and said it is really cool that I have been working on safe sports since 2017, and I am really glad the survey exists for every single person, the 2,000 participants at the national championships.

I was just going to paddle a war canoe with a couple of 17-year-olds from my club. I had a great summer, and it was great to see that everybody has to do the training.

We are putting our money where our mouth is through budget 2024, which, I will say as a casual observer of budgets for the last 25 years in Canada, is the most sport-forward budget I have ever seen. I am proud of that. The federal government recently committed $16 million to prevent and address maltreatment, support people with concussions and mental health challenges and advance inclusion, diversity, equity and accessibility in sport. We have made specific investments in athlete mental health that did not previously exist.

I will be a bit vulnerable here. When I retired from the national team in 2016, we did not have a mental health package. I did not have benefits, so I had to go to an external agency to get a counsellor and sit down to talk about some of my challenges and problems. Athletes do not have to do that anymore; there is funding for them. There are applied funding and investments in athlete mental health. They can go to Game Plan, work with their safe sport advisers or work directly with their national sport organization or outside their national sport organization. It is up to them, and it is so much better than it used to be.

We have also made investments in athlete well-being. We have invested in the sport institutions right across the country. I am very proud to have one in Milton, the national cycling centre at the Mattamy Athletic Centre. It is fantastic. Our track cyclists are amazing. Kelsey Mitchell is an Olympic champion, and another young guy just won a medal at the world championships. I am so proud of our investments, whether they come from big games like the Pan Am Games or the 2010 Olympics, or from the community sport initiative that I am going to talk about in a moment.

We also did something that athletes have been demanding since 1999. The current government has done it twice. I want to acknowledge that we increased the athlete assistance program. Many people ask me, almost as a weekly thing, whether we fund our athletes and whether we support our athletes enough from a financial perspective. I am proud to say that we have given them a more than 20% raise in the current budget. In 2017 we gave them the largest-ever raise they had received up until that date, and recently we have done it again.

Athletes still do not make enough money in Canada. I still do not think that Olympians and Paralympians are properly funded, and I am going to continue to make sure we fund them even more, but we have basically paid for grocery money every single month, and they will be getting that money in short order; it is with the Treasury Board. I am really proud of the athlete assistance program boost. Every national team athlete is asking me in my DMs when it is coming, and it will be there soon.

The Community Sport for All initiative is a hallmark of the government's action on making sure that sport is inclusive, available, equitable and safe for everybody across Canada. It has ensured that over a million Canadians have gotten more active through the power of sport, physical activity and recreation over the last couple of years. I am extremely proud of the Community Sport for All initiative, reinvested in budget 2024 with an incremental $15 million.

We are making the investments and it is making an impact. Canadians are healthier and our communities are more connected. They have better mental health services. Whether someone is playing in the sandbox or playing beach volleyball at the Olympic Games, team Canada is supporting our athletes. Unlike the Conservatives, we refuse to let Canadians go it alone. The Conservatives want to burn down our institutions. They want everyone just to be a cowboy and figure it out on their own, but our Liberal approach is to invest in the things that make our community stronger, like sport.

Our approach is to work to strengthen our institutions that serve Canadians instead of tearing them all down. Our approach is to invest in the things that support strong communities, like affordable child care, dental care and local community sport programs, and to invest in the things that unite us, such our athletes. Our approach is about making sure that everyone, regardless of ability, gender or identity has the same access to safe and welcoming sport activities, and our government's quick action to create a safe sport experience for all Canadians makes me proud to stand on this side of the House.

By investing in sport and athletes and by building a safer sport system, we are making Canadians safer, stronger, healthier and more united.

[Sébastien Lemire, Bloc, Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague from Milton for his speech on behalf of his government and for sharing his personal experience.

Today's debate comes after more than two and a half years of parliamentary work. This issue was examined by two standing committees, namely the status of women committee and the Canadian heritage committee. More than 100 witnesses came to testify and answer members' questions. The Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage made more than 21 recommendations in an almost 200-page report. What did the witnesses say?

Everyone, even the Canadian Olympic Committee and Own the Podium, says that we need an independent public inquiry. The victims are unanimous in demanding an independent public inquiry.

Why does the voluntary commission not work? It is because it does not sufficiently protect victims. That is a problem. Our parliamentary institutions allowed this. Why did we not implement real mechanisms to protect victims? The numbers do not lie. It will be a flop. The media is not talking about it. Why? It is because there is no mechanism to protect victims.

Why was there not an independent public inquiry in the first place?

[Adam van Koeverden, Liberal, Milton, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to say thank you and congratulations to my colleague and friend. He has been an active part of the progress made over the last two and a half years.

It has been a team effort. It has been challenging. The testimony has been hard to listen to and hard to read, but we have made extraordinary progress together. The one place where I will disagree with my friend and colleague is that we have not made progress. It has been extraordinary. We have stood up the Office of the Sport Integrity Commissioner. We have invested an incremental $75 million through the community sport for all initiative in a safe, equitable and accessible manner. We have made sure that the safe sport program is not just optional, as my friend keeps pointing out, but is mandatory; it is obligatory, and it is absolutely essential for every national sport organization that wishes to receive funding from Sport Canada.

The system is changing. The commission is absolutely under way, but the member refuses to acknowledge that. It is taking place as we speak, and that is remarkable progress.

I would like to thank the member once again. I would like to thank the members of the committee and all witnesses who have come forward to bravely share their testimony. It has created a safer sports system in Canada.

[Anna Roberts, Conservative, King—Vaughan, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I was part of the FEWO committee when members and witnesses came forward about the abuse in Gymnastics Canada. The CEO at the time did not do his job. He did not do a proper investigation.

The member opposite made a statement earlier that he believes survivors. That, to me, was a little strange. He stood up with his message and explained the protection of all athletes in safe sports. I want to ask him why he tried to intimidate one of our witnesses during committee meetings.