FEWO Committee Report

Bloc Québécois complementary opinion

Over the course of this study, the Bloc Québécois has done no more than carry the voice of thousands of athletes and victims. Unfortunately, this present report and its conclusions do not fully reflect the wishes so strongly expressed by many witnesses during the hearings of the Standing Committee on the Status of Women ("the Committee") on the study of women and girls in sport. We recognize the crucial importance of the testimony heard during the Committee's consultations. It is with a positive mindset and a renewed commitment to our original objective that the Bloc Québécois writes this supplementary opinion. We aim to reaffirm the fundamental demands made by victims and the vast majority of witnesses, as we firmly believe that the time has come to take concrete actions to address their needs and concerns.

Throughout this study, the Committee heard from over forty witnesses from all sectors of the sports community in the country. According to the data collected, more than 80 % of these witnesses told the Committee they wanted the federal government to launch an independent public inquiry to shed light on mistreatment (abuse and maltreatment) in sports environments across the country.

We believe that the Committee should not prescribe solutions before it has conducted an independent public inquiry. It is imperative that we give all necessary latitude to the future commissioners of the inquiry and to the victims who will contribute and participate to this work. It is also essential that this inquiry be trauma-informed and conducted with the participation of survivor groups. It's not up to us, federal legislators, to dictate the conclusions and solutions to a problem that is deeply rooted in every part of the country's sports system; it's up to the independent public inquiry to undertake this task.

Consequently, the Bloc Québécois proposes only one recommendation:

That the Government of Canada launch an independent public inquiry into maltreatment and abuse in sport pursuant to Part I of the Inquiries Act, and that it ensures that the following elements are met:

• that the appointment of the Commissioner of the inquiry be endorsed by the House of Commons;
• that such inquiry be conducted with the participation of survivor groups, that is trauma informed and that it includes public hearings; and
• that the inquiry’s mandate includes, but not be limited to, the review of:
• existing structures of the sport system, including organizations above the level of national sport organizations, such as Own the Podium, the Canadian Olympic Committee, the Sport Information Resource Centre, Sport Canada, etc.;
• agreements with sport clubs, provincial and territorial sport organizations, national sport organizations and professional sport teams;
• the use of non-disclosure agreements in the sport context;
• how law enforcement authorities deal with potential criminal activity in the sport context; and
• how patterns of abusive behavior are assessed and sanctioned, as opposed to individual complaints and incidents.