(Ottawa) The Bloc Québécois believes that the Trudeau government is putting the cart before the horse by restoring funding to Hockey Canada before the holding of an independent public inquiry — unanimously called for by the House of Commons — and a report of the women’s committee.
“It seems rushed to me. […] If we want to bring back a healthy and safe sports culture in Canada, we have to be able to fully shed light on the various alleged facts,” said Bloc spokesperson for Sports, Sébastien Lemire, on Monday. media scrum in Ottawa.
According to Mr. Lemire, Hockey Canada has not demonstrated “a profound culture change in four months”, either since the organization elected a new board of directors after the wholesale resignation of the previous one which was mired in scandals, being accused of having tried to protect players who participated in gang rapes.
On Sunday, Sports Minister Pascale St-Onge announced that the federal government is restoring funding to Hockey Canada, as its three conditions have been met, including becoming a full signatory to Sport Without Abuse and the Office of the Commissioner for Integrity in Sport (BCIS).
Hockey Canada also had to review and implement the recommendations of an independent governance review, led by retired judge Thomas Cromwell, as well as commit to reporting more frequently to Ottawa.
However, the decision comes at “a funny moment,” added Andréanne Larouche, the Bloc’s spokesperson for the Status of Women and Gender Equality, who sits on a parliamentary committee that prepares recommendations for the Minister of Sports, including Hockey Canada.
“We did the study. The report is coming. We should have waited for this report, she said sorry. The victims expressed their doubt (about the BCIS), the limits of this office. And even, it’s not nothing, two-thirds of the complaints that are rejected, it means that the victims do not have confidence. »
His colleague Sébastien Lemire is moreover disappointed that the motion he presented to the House of Commons last June and which obtained the unanimous consent of the parties does not force the government to launch the independent public inquiry, which has been demanded.
“A unanimous House motion should carry more weight. It’s laughable under the circumstances. I think it’s hijacking the role of parliament not to follow through on it in context,” he said.
According to him, “some thought should be given” to the idea of modifying the rules of the House of Commons.
Hockey Canada had seen its funding cut by the federal government, while several sponsors had stopped giving money since last May, when it was announced that a woman had allegedly been sexually assaulted by eight players, including members of the 2018 World Junior Team, following a founding gala in London, Ontario, in February 2018.