Making Government publications available to everyone

The Commission is pleased to release No Alternative: A Review of the Government of Canada’s Provision of Alternative Text Formats for People Who Are Blind, Deaf-Blind or Visually Impaired.

This study shows that blind, deaf-blind and visually impaired Canadians are at a serious disadvantage when it comes to accessing government publications. The Commission tested the availability and quality of alternative formats such as Braille or audio offered by federal institutions and discovered that people who are print-disabled have less than a 50/50 chance of obtaining the publication they want within a reasonable time. The quality of alternative formats of publications was also often unsatisfactory, and the process of ordering them, frustrating. Clearly, this situation must be remedied so that all Canadians have equal access to the Government’s printed publications.

The Commission has begun to work with Treasury Board to follow-up on the study’s recommendations, and hopes that the review will help make necessary changes happen.

Studies such as No Alternative play an important role in advancing human rights and promoting systemic change, outside of the human rights complaint process.

I encourage you to read No Alternative and consult our website regularly for information about the Commission’s work and about human rights.