Ottawa, November 20, 2002
Speaking notes for an address to the Standing Senate Committee
on Social Affairs, Science and Technology
Dr. Dyane Adam – Commissioner of Official Languages
Check against delivery
Mr. Chair:
Senators:
Thank you for giving me the opportunity today to comment on Bill C-12, an Act to promote physical activity and sport. Last June, I appeared before the Sub-Committee on the Study of Sport in Canada of the House of Commons Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage with regard to this bill, then Bill C-54.
As Commissioner of Official Languages, it is my duty to do everything I can to ensure recognition of the equality of status of our two official languages in federal institutions, and the promotion of that equality in Canadian society. During my appearance in June, I accordingly presented a number of amendments to ensure that the official language dimensions of the Canadian sport system are duly reflected in the new act.
I am pleased to note the changes made to Bill C-12 in response to some of my concerns, especially in the Preamble. Later on in my presentation, I will come back to the changes made to the bill and to those I proposed.
Given the importance of physical activity and sport in Canadians' lives (over 8 million Canadians participate in sports), it is essential that this bill, aimed at creating a strategic framework for federal government policies on physical activity and sport and at defining the measures the Minister may take to that end, reflect the fundamental values of our society, including the value of linguistic duality.
A study published by my Office in June 2000 showed that Francophones were under-represented in high performance sport; only one in five athletes were Francophone, and they were concentrated in only a few sports. As well, training and a number of essential support services such as health care, psychological care and sport science, were unavailable in French in many sport disciplines. Although some progress has been made, particularly concerning the language requirements to be respected by national sports organizations, there is still substantial catching-up to be done.
Two earlier studies had also noted similar shortcomings regarding services to athletes in both official languages. The Sub-Committee on the Study of Sport in Canada, chaired by Dennis Mills, recommended in its 1998 report that "the Government of Canada ensure the development and delivery of services and programs in both official languages." That report also acknowledged that sport is an important facet of our culture.
Moreover, in the early 1990s, a working group reporting to Canada's minister responsible for sport identified problems in providing services in French, as well as significant barriers to full participation by Francophones in various sport activities.
The enactment of a new law is therefore an excellent opportunity to strengthen the framework that upholds government activities in the field of sport by ensuring that linguistic duality is firmly anchored in that framework.
The three amendments I am proposing today are to the Preamble, as well as to sections 6 and 7 of Bill C-12.
1- Preamble
I was pleased to note that the Preamble to the bill includes two references to the principle of linguistic duality. I believe, however, that the initial wording I proposed last June for the first paragraph stated this principle more clearly. The use of the term linguistic duality refers not only to Canada being a bilingual country, it also reflects the principle of the equality of both official language communities. Senator Murray had also raised concerns about the current wording in the bill. Therefore, I would like to propose once again the following for the first paragraph of the Preamble:
WHEREAS the Government of Canada recognizes that physical activity and sport are integral parts of Canadian culture and society and produce benefits in terms of health, social cohesion, linguistic duality, economic activity, cultural diversity and quality of life;
The fourth paragraph of the Preamble, which states that the federal government intends to promote physical activity and sport in accordance with the principles set forth in the Official Languages Act, is a very significant addition to the bill and confirms the government's commitment to ensuring the recognition of the equality of status of both official languages.
In light of this important change to the fourth paragraph, the amendments we proposed to subsection 4(2) and section 5 of the bill are no longer necessary. I accordingly expect the minister responsible to take the necessary measures to create an environment conducive to the equitable participation of members of both official language communities in Canada's sport system.
2- Section 6
Section 6 deals with a vital component of Canada's sport system: it authorizes the Minister to provide financial assistance in the form of grants and contributions to any person. Under this provision, the government provides funding to a large number of national sports organizations that support activities in most sport disciplines and greatly contribute to the development of top athletes of both official languages communities. In accordance with the Treasury Board policy on grants and contributions pursuant to Part IV of the Official Languages Act and its spirit, ministers must include language-related clauses in contribution agreements for the delivery of services and communications in both official languages. Our 2000 study and the two studies mentioned above pointed to problems with the implementation of these provisions by several national sports organizations. The Minister's responsibilities when granting financial support should be clearly set out in the act; this would help clarify the Minister's role as regards the accountability of organizations benefitting from such support.
It is accordingly essential that section 6 be strengthened to remind the Minister of the need for contribution agreements to reflect Part IV and Part VII of the Official Languages Act. Reference to Part VII, which deals with the promotion of English and French, would be appropriate since it strengthens:
- the importance of contribution agreements for the promotion of English and French;
- and the importance of measures pursuant to section 43 taken under these agreements in order to encourage national sports organizations to provide their services in English and French and to foster the recognition and use of both languages.
We therefore recommend once again to amend the wording of section 6, as follows:
For the purposes of this Act, the Minister may provide financial assistance in the form of grants and contributions to any person, in accordance with Part IV and Part VII of the Official Languages Act.
3- Section 7
Moreover, given the prominent role played by the provinces and territories in the field of physical activity and sport, we recommended amendments to section 7, which deals with the agreements the Minister is authorized to enter into with the provinces and territories. Since agreements with the provinces and territories must reflect the needs of official language communities, we must once again stress the need to add a third subsection to section 7, providing as follows:
7.(3) In developing contribution and policy implementation agreements, the Minister shall take into account the needs of the English-speaking and French-speaking minorities, in accordance with the Official Languages Act.
I am pleased to see that the creation of a Sport Dispute Resolution Centre will help find extrajudicial solutions to disputes, including language-related disputes.
During my appearance before the Sub-Committee on the Study of Sport last June, I suggested that the Official Languages Act should apply to the Centre as though it were a federal institution. The explanations provided to the Sub-Committee in June by representatives of the Department of Canadian Heritage and those we have obtained since then demonstrate the difficulty in making the Centre subject to the Official Languages Act, for juridictional reasons.
I appreciate that since my appearance, the government has considered my concerns and has taken additional measures by clarifying paragraph 17(1)g), to ensure that the official languages policy to be developed by the Centre include provisions regarding the use of English and French as languages of work, as well as a method of resolving complaints relating to the policy's application. Similarly, paragraph 35(1)a) would provide for monitoring by the minister responsible to ensure that the Centre adopts the administrative regulations intended in paragraph 17(1)g).
In itself, the enactment of this law will set in motion a blueprint for society with repercussions for the well-being, and particularly the health, of Canadians. Both communities must therefore be treated equitably and the new legislation must not allow for any ambiguity regarding the language obligations it imposes. More than once, history has shown that in the absence of clear legislative provisions Canadians' language rights are not necessarily upheld.
In closing, I would like to remind the Committee that, according to data presented at the National Summit on Sport, over 90% of Canadians consider that sport strengthens the sense of belonging, at both the community and the national levels. In the January 2001 and September 2002 Speeches from the Throne, the government clearly affirmed its commitment to protecting and promoting our two official languages and to the long-term development of English and French minority communities. Encouraging physical activity and sport is a way of fulfilling this commitment. This means that in this country, all Anglophones and Francophones will on equal footing when it comes to participating in sport. The amendments made to the bill clearly demonstrate the government's desire to follow through on this commitment. The amendments I have proposed are intended to have this commitment reflected in the new act.
Thank you for your attention; I shall now be pleased to answer questions.
