Report on Parliament | New speaker of the house talks accessibility 

by Mike Cohen

The massive ongoing renovation of Parliament Hill, centered on revitalizing and reworking Centre Block, is expected to take until at least 2030 and cost up to $5 billion to complete. For now, our federally elected officials have taken up residence in the Sir John A. Macdonald building across the street. 

I had the good fortune to interview the Honourable Greg Fergus, installed last fall as the new Speaker of the House of Commons. He told me that he is committed to ensuring that the new facility will be fully accessible. 

In terms of accessibility upgrades, there will be new grab bars, tactile indicators like braille signage, touch-free door openers, lower reception counters and modified listening devices inside the chamber for those with hearing impairments. 

“As Speaker, I am proud to work with a team of diverse employees who do the important work of keeping the House of Commons running smoothly,” Fergus stated. “Our Institution wants everyone in the workplace to have a voice and contribute in their own way to excellence. All our activities and services must be accessible, so that everyone can participate fully. To become more accessible, the House of Commons is working to raise awareness, remove barriers and promote inclusion in the workplace.” 

Fergus made it clear that he is not waiting until 2030 to see that improvements in these areas are made. The team at the House of Commons, he maintains, are committed to meeting all obligations under the Accessible Canada Act, including its regulations and standards, and to being a leader in accessibility. His goal remains to provide an accessible and secure built environment to Members of Parliament, their staff, the administration employees and the Canadian public and visitors. 

The Speaker emphasized that closed captioning is available, live and on-demand, for the Chamber and for televised or webcast committee proceedings at https:// parlvu.parl.gc.ca/Harmony/en. 

“I have two constituency offices, and, from the moment I was elected, I ensured that they were both fully handicapped accessible,” he said. 

Fergus was born and raised on Montreal’s West Island. He has represented the constituency of Hull-Aylmer since 2015. 

Minister Khera attends launch of business disability network

As celebrations for International Day of Persons with Disabilities were held around the world last December 4, the Minister of Diversity, Inclusion and Persons with Disabilities Kamal Khera attended the launch of the Canadian Business Disability Network, hosted by Manulife Canada, and said it "is a true testament to the government and Canadians’ commitment to building accessible businesses.” 

Mike Cohen is manager, Marketing and Communications with the English Montreal School Board, an elected city council member for the city of Côte Saint-Luc and takes an interest in federal politics.