Minister Qualtrough addresses the Vancouver Board of Trade
Speech
April 6, 2016
Thank you for such a warm welcome.
First of all, I want to thank you all for being here. I have my family here, so my mom and my sport family are here. The PSO community of B.C., some national sport organizations, and my alumni from 2010 Legacies now are here. On the disability side, we have some of our strongest advocates in the room. We have presidents, group members, and then of course there's my Delta family. I really appreciate the support of former Chief Kim Baird here from Tsawwassen First Nation. Delta city councillors, it's just lovely to have you all here. So thank you very much.
And thank you to the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade for having me here today.
It's a real honour for me to be here, and I want to thank you for the opportunity to speak to you today about my mandate as given to me by Prime Minister Trudeau.
It's been some time since my last keynote here at the Board of Trade. In fact, I was last here during the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. Back then, I was wearing two hats. I was the Director of Sport Tourism and Inclusion Initiatives for 2010 Legacies Now and President of the Canadian Paralympic Committee.
I'm incredibly honoured to be back to speak to all of you today wearing the new hat as Canada's Minister of Sport and Persons with Disabilities.
A New Mandate
When Prime Minister Trudeau called me to Ottawa shortly after the election last fall, he asked me what I thought about a new mandate that combined my two life's passions: sport and advocacy for Canadians with a disability. The honour was both humbling and exciting, and I had to ask him to repeat himself.
You know, there is nothing like having this kind of chance to contribute to Canada and to Canadians.
I swear to God he looked me in the eye and he said: "Go change the world."
This challenge has continued to resonate with me every day for the past six months.
I am extremely fortunate to be doing something that is so deeply personal, to work in policy areas that are both fulfilling and have such a broad impact on Canadians. I also find it extremely exciting that so much of my personal history and experience can be of use.
Being able to see important and complex issues from multiple viewpoints is really important. All too easily governments can become mired in process and lose focus on the realities of the people they serve.
As a person with a visual impairment, I am in a position to understand the real world impact that our government can have on Canadians with disabilities.
As a high performance swimmer who reached the podium at two Paralympic Games, I understand that commitment our high performance athletes have to their own podium dreams.
As an experienced leader from a number of perspectives in the Canadian and international sports systems, I understand the demands placed on the hundreds of thousands of volunteers who put in countless hours to foster a love of sport in our young people.
And my legal career focused on human rights issues reinforced my commitment for both advocacy and action for Canadians with a disability.
All these perspectives have informed my deep understanding of the complex social issues that government and stakeholders are grappling with.
Now this all being said, as any parent would agree, no experience in life tests you more than when negotiating with four children, including two under the age of six. Nothing prepares you for that.
I bring this experience and perspective to a new federal government working extremely hard to foster a more active and inclusive Canada – as a more active and inclusive Canada – is a strong Canada. It's good for our collective health. It promotes pride in our cultural and national identify and a more active and inclusive Canada is also good for business.
Business Case for a More Active Canada
I still remember, as I'm sure many of you do, the energy throughout this city and region when we hosted the 2010 Winter Games. You could feel it in your bones right to your core - an intense and surging pride in Canada – each citizen embodying what it means to be Canadian in their own way.
This pride spread throughout our nation from coast to coast to coast. It culminated as our teams racked up record medal counts for Canada.
As the 2010 Games taught us – the rush of Olympic and Paralympic spirit contributed in significant ways to our regional economy.
Hotels, restaurants and many other businesses felt the positive effects that the Games have on our economy. Building of venues and other investments brought $1.26 billion into the economy. The Games generated more than 2.3 billion in real Gross Domestic Product to British Columbia alone and created more than 45,000 jobs.
More recently, we felt similar impacts during 2015, the Year of Sport in Canada, with Canadian cities from coast to coast hosting major international sporting events.
Canada hosted our friends from across the Americas and Caribbean for the Toronto 2015 Pan and Parapan American Games. The Government of Canada invested $377 million in the construction and renovation of 27 venues, including 10 new sport facilities.
Once the Games ended, these venues were turned over to the 16 municipalities across the Games' footprint as training facilities for Canadian athletes and home to community sport activities and gatherings.
Our $65 million in support to the Toronto 2015 Sport Legacy Fund will ensure the upkeep of and broad access to these facilities for many, many years to come.
The FIFA Women's World Cup was another chapter in our country's rich sporting history, especially for women's sport. The six host cities around the country, including right here in Vancouver, welcomed the world in record numbers.
Not only did we set a Women's World Cup attendance record, but the Government of Canada's $15 million investment in the tournament contributed to a return of over $493 million in economic activity for Canada, far exceeding both FIFA and the Canadian Soccer Association's preliminary projections.
Finally, over 90 international single-sport events were held in communities across the country thanks to $20 million in support from the Government of Canada. These events allowed more of our athletes to compete – and win – against the world's best at home and in front of enthusiastic Canadian fans.
And on the road to Canada's 150th birthday next year, 2016 will be another busy year with Canada continuing to be a major destination for the world's top athletes and competitions.
The economic benefits that come with these kinds of events are clear – and they’re substantial.
Importance of Sport and Recreation
Sport also serves as a powerful example of what can be achieved when one sets their sights on a goal and dedicates themselves completely to achieving it. The lessons learned in the days, weeks, months and years in the pursuit of that extra inch or split second are profound and an experience not easily forgotten. I know that firsthand.
The relentless pursuit of excellence by our athletes will continue this coming summer as they proudly wear the maple leaf and push for the podium at the 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Summer Games in Rio. I know all Canadians, especially our young people, will be inspired by our athletes' example in getting more active and pursuing their own dreams.
Sport can also be a powerful unifier. We see it when people of differing abilities come together around sport. But no one gets to the top of their game without help. Once again, I sure didn't.
As the single largest investor in Canada's sport system, the Government of Canada provides almost $200 million per year in support from the playground to the podium.
At the sport excellence end of the spectrum, we support 1,900 of our country's top athletes through direct monthly support that helps them with their living, training and education expenses. At the same time, we make significant investments in 80 national and multi-sport organizations to help introduce sport to our country's youth and to foster value-based and inclusive sport at all levels of the system.
I am very proud of the work we're doing to help more Canadians, especially our young people, get involved in sport.
To support that effort, we actively partner through matched funding agreements with all 13 provinces and territories to support community-level physical activity and sport opportunities with a specific focus on supporting sport and recreation opportunities for people in under -represented groups such as indigenous people and Canadians with disabilities.
I’m especially proud of our commitment to the organizations like Canadian Tire Jumpstart and KidSport Canada who provide access to organized sport for kids who would not otherwise have the financial means to do so.
In fact, as part of our government's efforts to welcome refugees and immigrant children to Canada, over 4,700 children will benefit from organized sport opportunities through Jumpstart programming.
Since the launch of Jumpstart in 2005, the Government of Canada has provided over $9 million in direct support, which has given an additional 87,000 kids the opportunity to participate in organized sport.
And through our government's investment in social infrastructure, we are supporting more inclusive communities.
I was in Iqaluit earlier this month for the Arctic Winter Games and I saw the new Iqaluit Aquatics Centre that is under construction. Once completed and open to the public, this facility will have a direct impact on the health and wellness of the community in Iqaluit.
I am proud to say that this project and others like it received funding in Budget 2016 as part of our infrastructure plan. We also committed $150 million to support sport and recreation infrastructure directly – money that will assist in revitalizing this aging infrastructure.
Business Case for a More Inclusive Canada
Our government certainly has set our aim on more active communities, and we're just as committed to fostering inclusive communities.
Many of you have heard me speak about the legal obligation to accommodate people with disabilities. Many of you have heard me speak about the moral obligation to be inclusive, but today I'd like to focus on the business case for inclusion.
Canadians with disabilities account for 14% of our population. This number will only grow as our population ages. This is an underutilized labour force that contains some of the most innovative and creative thinkers our nation has to offer. I can tell you that having a disability necessitates a certain amount of thinking outside the box.
These are also consumers and potential customers. If your business isn't accessible, you don't have access to this customer base. If your hotel doesn't have sufficient accessible rooms, you are losing out on conventions and conferences. Accessible tourism is big business. Tourists with disabilities are one of the fastest-growing tourism markets, and Vancouver is at the forefront of this, being one of the most accessible places in the world to visit.
And think as well of the multiplier effect, which is estimated at threefold. Every person with a disability is surrounded by friends, colleagues and family whose consumer, travel and leisure choices are also impacted by lack of access. If someone in a wheelchair is part of a 10-person night on the town in Vancouver and can't get into a restaurant or sleep in a hotel, the business of those 10 people is lost.
I believe that we are at a tipping point. There is a clear public will for business and government to be open and accessible. I want each and every business, not just here in Vancouver, but throughout Canada, to get into this mind set. It's good for communities, and it's good for business.
Consider the child with the disability who goes out to play in an accessible playground with her friends. She learns how to love being active early in life. She has a greater connection with her community. She's more likely to develop a life-long love of physical activity and sport, and maybe, just maybe, she may reach for her own podium dreams.
Or the parent with a disability who can play on that accessible playground with his child who doesn't have a disability.
It’s local businesses that design and are a part of building those accessible playgrounds, community spaces and work places. And it just keeps on going.
Right here in British Columbia, the Strathcona Wilderness Institute is developing a more accessible Strathcona Park by constructing a new dock, building accessible picnic tables and retro-fitting a “stepped” boardwalk as well as constructing disability access bathroom facilities.
Now we have an accessible park. This will mean more visitors who will have a better experience and who will return. We will have parents with strollers. We have the elderly with their mobility devices. This will impact many members of our community.
The Regional District of Mount Waddington is renovating its Regional District Offices with accessible sidewalks, covered ramp, enhanced lighting, accessible parking and washrooms and automated doors. Now we have an accessible office that is truly open to all for business.
Investments in accessibility are investments in business, which is why Budget 2016 included investments in social infrastructure. Investments in this area can improve the quality of life for Canadians struggling to find footholds that can help improve their livelihoods.
Budget 2016 announced an additional $4 million over two years for the Enabling Accessibility Fund to help fund construction and renovations to improve accessibility and safety for persons with disabilities in Canadian communities. This is in addition to the $15 million per year the program already provides. Once we announce that program and the details, I would really encourage you all to apply for funding to make your spaces more accessible. It will pay off in spades.
Federal Accessibility Legislation
We have made progress for Canadians with disabilities, but for me, the privilege of being Canada's first-ever minister dedicated to people with disabilities comes with a responsibility of setting a standard worthy of Canadians, one that the rest of the world can aspire to.
In my mandate letter from the Prime Minister, he tasked me with developing federal legislation in the form of a Canadians with Disability Act.
This work builds on Canada's strong commitment to our international partners through our ratification of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
There's a significant legislative gap federally in supporting disability issues in Canada around accessibility and inclusion. While we have strong anti-discrimination laws, the flaws in our human rights mechanisms are that we have to wait until people are discriminated against before we can help them, and we impose a burden on individuals to address systemic issues. We need legislation that helps businesses and service providers, all of those within the federal jurisdiction in addressing accessibility for all Canadians.
As a first step towards achieving this, I will soon be launching an extensive consultation process on federal accessibility legislation.
This is an enormous undertaking, but I believe Canada can continue to strengthen its leadership in the world with legislation that helps us avoid discrimination and exclusion from the beginning.
This is cutting- edge legislation, providing we do it right.
We need to include everyone from the start. I can assure you that everybody will have the opportunity to contribute to this discussion process. Our engagement will be of a gold standard. We will consult with all Canadians – including those living with and without disabilities. We will consult with provinces, territories, municipalities and stakeholders. And as employers, your voice will be an important one in this process – I would say a critical one.
A couple of years ago, Employment and Social Development Canada brought together a panel to talk to Canadian employers about the labour market participation of Canadians with disabilities. During the consultation process, employers from across the country – from businesses big and small and from a variety of sectors – talked about their experiences in employing people with disabilities and how the private sector could do better.
Their findings were very encouraging, and I won't go into the details, but it came down to one thing: hiring people with disabilities is good for business.
And here in British Columbia, you can be incredibly proud of public and private sector leadership in the area of accessibility. The province-wide consultation that led to the creation of Accessibility 2024, a plan to make B.C. the most successful province in Canada, was ground-breaking. And I'm not just saying that because I helped lead the consultation and write the report.
I want to learn from what we did in B.C. and have a similarly open and transparent process at the federal level. Federal leadership in this area is well overdue. We need to have some very difficult and challenging discussions at the national level. We need to capture what we hear and act where we can to make the lives of all Canadians better.
Fortunately, when it comes to support for Canadians with disabilities, we're building on a solid foundation. The Government of Canada already has some good initiatives in place to help people with disabilities.
Conclusion
I'm proud of the work we're doing. I'm proud of all of you and of the work you're doing. And I'm proud of the work we can do to promote sport and active living. A more active and inclusive Canada provides significant benefits to the economy.
While much progress has been made, we can and should do more.
Sport gave me the drive and confidence to reach for my goals, even the ones that I thought might have been beyond my grasp. And support for people with disabilities can help many others do the same.
Through Budget 2016, we are well on our way.
I look forward to working with all sectors, including the business community, to continue to forge a path towards an active and inclusive Canada.
We will continue to be a world leader. That was true of Vancouver in 2010, and it's still true today.
Thank you.
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Hon. Carla Qualtrough Employment and Social Development Canada Persons