Open Letter

Open Letter to Mr. Nicolas Girard, Minister of Municipal Affairs

Montréal, October 22, 2026 - The formation of a new government in Quebec presents an opportunity to reaffirm that children's safety around residential swimming pools must remain a priority, regardless of changes in government. The Lifesaving Society and all its members and partners congratulate Mr. Nicolas Girard on his appointment as Minister of Municipal Affairs and welcome him to his new role.

Minister, we would like to take this opportunity, as you assume your new responsibilities, to share our expectations regarding the Residential Swimming Pool Safety Regulation, the enforcement of which now falls under your authority and remains essential to preventing avoidable tragedies. Our position is clear: children's safety must never be compromised, and preventive measures must be maintained, without further postponements or relaxations that would weaken their effectiveness.

Your appointment comes at a time when the recent report by coroner Dr. Mylène Servant, concerning the drowning death of a three-year-old girl in Saint-Constant, serves as a painful reminder of the consequences of inadequate protective measures. The child was able to access the family swimming pool on her own because it was not completely enclosed by a protective barrier, a situation that illustrates precisely the risks the regulation seeks to prevent. In her report, the coroner recommends, among other things, maintaining the September 30, 2027, deadline for bringing the affected installations into compliance, without further postponement, and launching a province-wide awareness campaign in collaboration with the Lifesaving Society.

These recommendations reflect concerns we have been expressing for several years and are supported by troubling data. Between 2011 and 2022, 42 children aged 0 to 11 drowned in residential swimming pools in Quebec, and in 76% of these deaths, missing or defective safety features allowed the child to access the water. The consequences of drowning also extend beyond fatalities, as demonstrated by research conducted by Dr. Hussein Wissanji, in collaboration with the Institut national de santé publique du Québec and the Coroner's Office, which documented 655 drowning incidents involving young people aged 0 to 17 between 2017 and 2021, confirming the magnitude of this public health issue.

As an organization dedicated to drowning prevention for more than a century, we continually emphasize the importance of attentive and active supervision of children near water, while recognizing that no parent can guarantee absolute vigilance at every moment. This is why we advocate a multilayered approach to protection, in which supervision, swimming instruction, and water safety education must be complemented by safe physical barriers that prevent unsupervised access to a swimming pool.

Minister, we have already waited long enough for these measures to be applied to all residential swimming pools in Quebec. We refuse to believe that financial considerations or difficulties associated with meeting regulatory standards should ever outweigh a child's life. Every further postponement risks trivializing the consequences of inaction and sending the troubling message that protecting our youngest citizens can still wait, even though we know full well that the price to pay may be a human life.

We do not, however, underestimate the challenges that compliance may pose for some homeowners, particularly when the required work involves significant expenses or when the layout of existing installations makes compliance more difficult. Nevertheless, we believe these realities should lead us to seek solutions that facilitate compliance rather than question safety requirements, particularly by considering financial assistance measures, clarifying regulatory obligations, and providing municipalities with greater support in fulfilling their inspection and enforcement responsibilities. Our goal is not to impose constraints on homeowners, but rather to ensure that no child can access a swimming pool alone.

We therefore ask you, Minister, to promptly confirm that the September 30, 2027, deadline will be maintained, without further postponement, and to encourage homeowners to bring their installations into compliance now rather than waiting until the deadline approaches. We also hope that your government will act on Dr. Servant's recommendations, particularly regarding public awareness and the mobilization of the swimming pool industry. We assure you of our full cooperation in helping implement concrete solutions that will strengthen drowning prevention in Quebec.

We welcome your appointment to oversee this matter with a willingness to continue a constructive dialogue, but also with the conviction that the protective measures already established must be maintained and rigorously enforced. The death of this young girl in Saint-Constant reminds us why these requirements exist and why we must collectively stay the course, regardless of changes in government or pressure to reduce safety obligations.

Minister, we hope we can count on your commitment to ensuring that children's safety remains at the heart of your government's decisions. Although we cannot change the events that claimed this young girl's life, we collectively have the power and responsibility to act now to prevent other families from experiencing such a tragedy. While this letter places particular emphasis on children's vulnerability, it is important to remember that drowning can affect people of all ages and that its prevention is a collective responsibility.

Raynald Hawkins
Executive Director
Lifesaving Society – Quebec Division