Senator Petitclerc: Thank you, Senator Gold.

I understand that Minister of Transport Rodriguez has requested to meet with Air Canada. Can you convey to them that solutions to the problems faced by persons with disabilities are not going to be arrived at politically? They need to be solved on the ground. The Rick Hansen Foundation is clear that it has to involve proper training, understanding consequences and letting people bring their wheelchairs on board. Can you pass on that message?

Hon. Chantal Petitclerc: My question is for the Government Representative in the Senate.

[English]

Senator Gold, most Canadians enjoy their flights while watching a movie, working or resting. Wheelchair users spend their flights stressed, not knowing whether they will have a wheelchair when they land.

Stephanie Cadieux, Canada’s Chief Accessibility Officer, realized after arriving in Vancouver recently that her wheelchair had been left in Toronto. Rodney Hodgins lives with spastic cerebral palsy. He had to lower himself to the floor and drag himself off a plane because the airline didn’t provide him with his wheelchair. A few weeks ago, I had a less dramatic but equally frustrating experience boarding a flight.

The adoption of the Accessible Canada Act in 2019 promised to make Canada a barrier-free country and made all persons with disabilities optimistic. Clearly, however, airlines are not conforming effectively with the Accessible Canada Act. What is the government doing about that?