Ottawa – Canadians with disabilities will be better able to follow a Senate committee’s study of proposed disability legislation after the Senate Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology implemented measures to make its work more accessible.

The committee is studying Bill C-22, the Canada Disability Benefit Act, which would establish a new benefit for working-age people with disabilities.

To ensure more Canadians can easily follow the committee’s work, interpreters will be in the committee room to render meetings in American and Quebec sign language in addition to the usual English and French interpretation. Videos of these meetings with embedded sign-language interpretation will be made available to stream on demand after a one-week delay. Briefs related to the study of Bill C-22 will also be made available in an accessible format in both official languages.

Anyone requiring documents in a format not available on the website is invited to contact the clerk of the committee by email at SOCI@sen.parl.gc.ca or by telephone at 613-698-0386.

Quick Facts

• The Senate Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology held its first meeting on Bill C-22 on March 22, 2023.
• Bill C-22 was introduced in the House of Commons on October 18, 2022; it was introduced in the Senate on February 2, 2023.
• The Senate’s 2023-2025 Accessibility Plan was published on December 1, 2022.

Quotes

“We are very pleased to provide enhanced access of committee meetings so the people most affected by Bill C-22 can more easily follow how they are being represented in Parliament. This is a concrete example of the Senate’s commitment to accessibility.”

- Senator Ratna Omidvar, Chair of the committee

“Improving accessibility is an ongoing project for the Senate; we will take the lessons learned from the measures we are taking to inform the work of the Senate in future and to ensure that all Canadians have the resources they need to participate fully in our democracy.”

- Senator Patricia Bovey, Deputy Chair of the committee

Associated Links

• Watch the committee hearings on SenParlVU.
• Read more about Bill C-22, the Canada Disability Benefit Act.
• Learn more about the Senate Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology.
• Follow the committee on social media using the hashtag #SOCI.
• Subscribe to email alerts for Senate committees.
• Sign up for the Senate eNewsletter.

For more information:
Amely Coulombe
Communications Officer | Senate of Canada
343-575-7553| amely.coulombe@sen.parl.gc.ca