Hockey Canada CEO Scott Smith told the standing committee on Canadian Heritage that he will not be stepping down. He told MPs he is capable of bringing about change within the struggling organisation. Hockey Canada chief financial officer Brian Cairo told the commission that of the $7.6 million, $6.8 million was for settlements related to Graham James, a former hockey coach convicted of sexually assaulting young players hockey. Cairo said the fund is generated by memberships and investments in Hockey Canada. Hockey Canada says it has paid 9 settlement payments from the National Equity Fund totaling $7.6 million. The fund is partly made up of membership fees. —@AshleyBurkeCBC Both Cairo and Smith defended the fund’s existence, saying it’s necessary because the agency’s insurance won’t cover all types of claims. Cairo cited the James case as an example. “Insurance companies were not going to insure us for these types of cases,” Cairo told the committee. But Cairo later said Hockey Canada settled an additional 12 sexual misconduct claims during the same time period for $1.3 million paid out through insurance. “We have not used money to protect our image. We used money to answer [to] and to support the victims … so we used money to support families,” Smith said. Hockey Canada president Scott Smith: “We haven’t used money to protect our image.” (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press) Hockey Canada announced earlier this month that it would no longer use the fund to settle sexual assault claims. In May 2022, Hockey Canada settled a $3.55 million lawsuit filed in April by a woman who claims she was sexually assaulted by eight former CHL players after a Hockey Canada Foundation event in London, Ont., in June of 2018. The allegations have not been proven in court. The identities of the players allegedly involved and the alleged victim are not publicly known, nor are the terms of the settlement. Barry Lorenzetti, CEO of Hockey Canada’s insurance broker BFL Canada, told the committee that Hockey Canada’s insurer for sexual harassment claims, AIG Canada, has agreed to let the organization settle the case using money from the fund. However, Cairo told the committee earlier that Hockey Canada now intends to recoup the money it spent on the settlement from AIG. Lorenzetti said it was news to him. “The question, to my recollection or knowledge, was never raised as to whether [AIG] would reopen the claim down the road if Hockey Canada asked them for damages or compensation,” Lorenzetti told the committee. WATCHES | Hockey Canada CEO says ‘ready to face consequences’ after second day of hearings
Hockey Canada CEO says ‘ready to face consequences’ after second day of hearings
Hockey Canada CEO Scott Smith says that while he believes he is “the right person to take Hockey Canada to the right place,” he is open to a resignation and a governance overhaul. Lorenzetti said that, based on his experience in the insurance industry, having a fund for Hockey Canada to settle claims is not unusual. “We deal with thousands and thousands and thousands of customers across Canada and internationally. It’s not unusual … for a company to have a reserve or a fund for uninsured losses or claims that are not recoverable,” he said. “I think it’s prudent risk management and prudent practice.” Hockey Canada hired an independent investigator, Henein Hutchison LLP, after learning of the alleged assault. Police in London, Ont., launched a criminal investigation shortly thereafter. At the commission Wednesday, Hockey Canada officials said the company was paid between $280,000 and $287,000 by the National Equity Fund. Smith and his predecessor, Tom Renney, testified before the committee about the alleged assault in June. Since then, the fund maintained by members’ subscriptions for settling sexual assault lawsuits came to light. Hockey Canada has also pledged to implement reforms to change the culture within the organization and address abusive and toxic behavior. This was recently announced by the London police they reopen the investigation in the alleged 2018 attack. Members of the 2003 World Junior Hockey Team they also face charges related to an alleged gang sexual assault in 2003.
Hockey Canada’s CEO says he won’t resign
Members of Hockey Canada’s leadership, including Smith, are facing multiple calls to step down and let a new team bring changes to the organization and the sport. Several MPs on the committee expressed displeasure with Smith’s leadership. Conservative MP John Nater asked him if he would resign. “For the good of hockey, for the good of the countless volunteers in this country, the good work that countless impeccable people do in the sport of hockey, I strongly believe that there needs to be new leadership at Hockey Canada,” Nater said. WATCHES | MP John Nater questions Hockey Canada CEO during second day of committee hearings
MP John Nater questions Hockey Canada CEO during second day of committee hearings
Nater asked Hockey Canada CEO Scott Smith if he would agree to step down as his organization faces allegations of sexual misconduct. Smith said he would step down if the board decides his leadership is no longer needed. “Will you do that? Will you resign so that new leadership can take over?” Smith said in response that he has no plans to resign. “I’m ready to take on that responsibility, to change our game, I think I have the experience to do it,” he told the committee. Smith said he is prepared to resign if Hockey Canada’s board or a governance review panel decides he is not up to the task. He also apologized for how the organization initially responded to the alleged sexual assault case in 2018. “We should have done more, we could have done more, and we could have done it faster. And that’s why I apologize for that,” Smith said. Bloc Quebecois MP Sébastien Lemire and NDP MP Peter Julian also expressed doubts about Smith’s ability to lead Hockey Canada going forward. “The Canadian public has lost confidence in Hockey Canada. There’s no doubt about that,” Julian said. “I find that this hearing today is really the last chance for Hockey Canada to gain some credibility.” Liberal MP Anthony Housefather praised Hockey Canada’s efforts to change, but said they are too little, too late. “I don’t think they’re going far enough by any means … there needs to be a bigger cultural change in Hockey Canada than what we’re promising today,” he said. “There are times when good people have to step aside because the public has lost faith in them, and I fear this may be one of those times.”
The leagues say cases of sexual harassment were not reported to Hockey Canada
Ontario Hockey League (OHL) commissioner David Branch, Western Hockey League (WHL) commissioner Ron Robison and Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) commissioner Gilles Courteau told the committee that while they were aware of a number of allegations of sexual misconduct involving players in the leagues in the last five years, did not inform Hockey Canada about them. QMJHL commissioner Gilles Courteau appears as a witness before the standing committee on Canadian Heritage in Ottawa on Wednesday, July 27, 2022. (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press) Courteau said the QMJHL has suspended two players due to allegations of sexual misconduct in the past five years. Branch said there was one sexual harassment complaint directed at an OHL player during the same time period. That player was suspended, he said, and required to participate in educational programs as a condition of reinstatement. Robison said the WHL has dealt with two reports of sexual misconduct in the past five years. He said police investigated both cases and the players involved were suspended from the league. All commissioners testified that they did not report the cases to Hockey Canada.
