An Act to Promote Physical Activity and Sport

BILL C-54

On behalf of the Minister of Canadian Heritage, the Honourable Paul DeVillers, Secretary of State (Amateur Sport) tabled on April 10, 2002, Bill C-54: An Act to promote physical activity and sport.

Bill C-54 is available for public viewing.

Summary of Bill C-54

Title

The Fitness and Amateur Sport Act (1961) would be replaced by the Physical Activity and Sport Act in order to better respond to the complexities of the modern world of sport.

Purpose of the bill

The purpose of the bill is to encourage, promote and develop sport and physical activity. The bill will also serve to effectively reflect and strengthen the important role the Government of Canada plays with regard to physical activity and sport.

Government of Canada’s commitment

The bill includes a preamble stating that the Government of Canada considers physical activity and sport to be important to Canadian society. It sets forth the government’s desire to encourage Canadians to increase their level of physical activity and their participation in sport activities and to encourage the cooperation of the provincial and territorial governments, physical activity groups, sport communities and the private sector in this regard.

Government of Canada’s policies on physical activity and sport

The bill entrenches the Government of Canada’s policies on physical activity and sport, clearly setting forth their objectives.

The government’s policy on physical activity seeks to promote physical activity as a fundamental element of the health and well-being of Canadians, to encourage them to include physical activity in their daily lives and to help them reduce the barriers that prevent them from being active.

With regard to sport, the government’s policy seeks to increase participation in sport, support excellence and build capacity in the Canadian sport system. The ethical standards and values that should guide participation in sport in Canada are also stated in the policy, namely drug-free sport, the treatment of all persons with fairness and respect, and the fair, equitable, transparent and timely resolution of disputes in sport.

Minister’s mandate

In order to encourage, promote and develop physical activity and sport, the Minister may take a series of measures, as set forth in the former Fitness and Amateur Sport Act. Among other things, the Minister is mandated to coordinate federal initiatives related to the encouragement, promotion and development of physical activity and sport. The proposed Physical Activity and Sport Act states that this coordination role may include the implementation of the Government of Canada’s sport policy, the hosting of major sport events and anti-doping measures.

The proposed Physical Activity and Sport Act outlines new measures that the Minister may take to reflect and strengthen the Government of Canada’s current role in sport, which include among others:

: - encourage the promotion of sport as a tool of individual and social development in Canada and, in cooperation with other countries, abroad;; - encourage the private sector to contribute financially to the development of sport;; - facilitate the participation of under-represented groups in the Canadian sport system;; - encourage provincial and territorial governments to promote and develop sport;; - coordinate the Government of Canada’s initiatives and efforts with regard to the staging and hosting of the Canada Games;; - encourage and support alternative dispute resolution for sport.

Sport Dispute Resolution Centre of Canada

The bill provides for the creation of a not-for-profit, independent corporation whose mandate is to provide the sport community with a national dispute resolution service for sport disputes, as well as expertise and assistance with regard to alternative sport dispute resolution. The Centre will contribute to the timely, fair, and transparent resolution of disputes in sport. With the Centre’s expertise and assistance, such disputes may be resolved in a timely manner at a lower cost to the sport community and with the flexibility needed to meet its specific needs.

For more information, please see the following:

Backgrounder on the Sport Dispute Resolution Centre

Backgrounder on the Canadian Sport Policy

Mission

Policies

Funding
Programs

   Sport Canada
   Research
   Initiative

International
Activities

Sport Lexicon

Official Languages
Corner

Sport
Organizations

Multi-sports


	Date modified: 2003-05-16	Important Notices

An Act to Promote Physical Activity and SportBILL C-54

An Act to Promote Physical Activity and Sport

BILL C-54