Canadian Heritage Committee on Nov. 29th, 2007

[The Chair, Conservative, Gary Schellenberger]

Thank you for that.

Mr. Fast.

[Ed Fast, Conservative, Abbotsford, BC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Minister, as well as your staff, for appearing before us today.

Despite some of the doom and gloom we hear, in fact there has been a lot of good news for culture and the arts in the past year.

Perhaps first of all you or your staff could tell us the net increase in the budget you are requesting. I understand it's around $77 million. Is that right?

[Judith LaRocque]

It would depend for what year, and how you count it, but I will get back to you.

[Ed Fast, Conservative, Abbotsford, BC]

Thank you.

In the meantime, I want to go into some of the incentives that we as a government have introduced to ensure that not only government has to invest in arts and culture, but that the private sector sees that as an opportunity to give back to our communities what they have received.

We've implemented some tax incentives that encourage business people to donate shares and securities to arts and cultural organizations. Could you perhaps expand on what we've done, and also on what kinds of results we've seen so far? And if you can, in financial terms, what are those results?

[Josée Verner, Conservative, Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC]

On your first question regarding the Supplementary Budget, the amount is $77 million. I believe that is good news for the arts and culture community.

As for the tax exemptions and other measures that have been implemented, it is well known that they have been very well received by the community. Before we can really set about measuring and tracking the effect of these initiatives, we will need to take a little more time to see what the concrete results are. Indeed, we are talking about additional funding for the Canada Council for the Arts. This is additional funding for festivals to be held all across the country, and particularly small festivals that are organized in the different communities. The organizers of such activities are very pleased that we have thought of them, and we obviously hope they will all want to put in a request for funds, so that we can respond positively to such requests.

[Ed Fast, Conservative, Abbotsford, BC]

Thank you for that.

I was surprised in fact to hear in your presentation today that the increase in funding to the Canada Council is actually going to be a permanent increase of $30 million per year. When our first announcement was made, I received numerous e-mails from performing arts organizations, and certainly from my neck of the woods in British Columbia, applauding what we had done as a government. Now to see this is a permanent decision and that it's going to be $30 million, I must commend you for that step.

I happen to come from a background where our family does have a long musical heritage. We enjoy going to all kinds of musical events, including rock and roll, country, right through to classical and opera; we do it all as a family.

What response have you had from the performing arts community with respect to the enhanced funding to be available to them through the Canada Council?

[Josée Verner, Conservative, Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC]

The announcement was made in July. That increase corresponds to 20 per cent of the budget of the Canada Council for the Arts, which was $151 million, and has now been increased to $181 million. This is obviously good news for the arts community, which desperately needed this funding. We had to respond to that request by demonstrating the respect we all owe our artists and the members of this community.

That announcement was made by my predecessor. I picked up the congratulations when I took over the portfolio on August 14.

[Ed Fast, Conservative, Abbotsford, BC]

Thank you.

Mr. Chair, I have another question, but I'll save it for the next round.

[The Chair, Conservative, Gary Schellenberger]

Good, because your time is up, or pretty close to it.

Mr. Bélanger.

[Mauril Bélanger, Liberal, Ottawa—Vanier, ON]

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Minister, this is the first opportunity I have had to publicly congratulate you for your appointment to the position of Minister of the Canadian Heritage. I want to thank you for stating, in your opening comments, that it is your conviction that cultural is essential to our quality of life and our sense of identity. Although I share that vision, we do not agree on the means that are required to achieve it or the particular approach that is required. So, I have several questions for you.

First of all, I would have liked your visit to last for two hours, rather than one. I feel that is necessary. Therefore, I invite you to come back again, because it would be a good idea to have more in-depth discussions.

There is a major concern at the present time within the cultural community. Many groups have expressed that concern a number of times. It was only deepened by the policy direction issued by your government to the CRTC, through an order-in-council, to the effect that it should rely on market forces.

Recently, your government set up a Competitiveness Committee composed of five private sector representatives. Unfortunately, the cultural industries were included in their mandate.

Why did you allow the cultural industries to be included in the mandate of a committee that will be looking at the competitiveness of our industries, with a view to lifting foreign ownership restrictions? Is that what the committee will be examining? That is my first question.

My second question relates to the Exhibition Transport Service, a subject that has already been raised. We are told that what the private sector is currently providing costs 30 per cent more and that it doesn't go everywhere. At a briefing with your officials, I made a counter-suggestion that would have taken us where you want to go. I would like to know whether they discussed that with you and whether you have retained that suggestion or not.

My third question relates to periodicals. The Canada Post Corporation wants to withdraw from the Publications Assistance Program. Last December — in other words, 11 months ago — your government said it would review this whole matter. As far as I know, no such review has yet been undertaken. When and how will that be accomplished?

I would have liked to ask you a couple of questions about the museums policy and film, but I will refrain from doing so, since I would like to get answers to the ones I've already asked.

[Josée Verner, Conservative, Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC]

Thank you for your questions, Mr. Bélanger.

I, too, have met with a number of groups since August. It seems to me that, in the speech I made to the Canadian Association of Broadcasters — or CAB — our government's commitment was quite clear. There are certainly new technologies available and people demanding that market forces play a dominant role, but there is also an important item which we believe in: our quality Canadian programming. I obviously invited people to give greater thought to these realities. Every time this question has been put to me, I have never denied the fact that there are market forces, but I have most certainly emphasized the fact that we are committed to providing quality Canadian programming.

You refer to a committee looking at competitiveness and foreign ownership. Our government has no intention of changing anything with respect to foreign ownership; I can assure you of that.

I'm trying to go quickly so that I can answer all your questions.

You also referred to postal fees for publications. The government issued a policy directive last year, if I'm not mistaken, asking Canada Post to continue with the program until March of 2009. We are currently looking at this. We know that the publications sector, whether it's community newspapers or magazines, will want to comment on this, and we will most certainly be anxious to hear what they have to say.

Mr. Blais may want to add something with respect to the competitiveness committee.

[Jean-Pierre Blais, Assistant Deputy Minister, Cultural Affairs, Department of Canadian Heritage]

Indeed, Mr. Bélanger, the committee is looking at a number of industries, but our department has had an opportunity to speak with the committee, which includes Ms. Isabelle Hudon, who worked with our Minister at the November 2007 Montreal, Cultural Metropolis Rendez-Vous, and one of those industries is the cultural industry. I believe the committee understands the specificity of the cultural community, in keeping with the spirit of the Convention on Cultural Diversity, and that this is part of their work.

[The Chair, Conservative, Gary Schellenberger]

Thank you.

We're going to split a little time here.

Mr. Malo, you're first--but keep your questions relatively short, please.

[Luc Malo, Bloc, Verchères—Les Patriotes, QC]

Good morning, Minister.

In your response to Mr. Bélanger, you said that your message to the CAB had been clear. You told them that changes to the broadcasting regulations were in the works.

Will the changes you announced on the 6th be legislative in nature? Or, do you intend to do what your colleague from the Department of Industry did and issue a policy direction to the CRTC?

In the same vein, are you in favour of a strict regulatory framework for the broadcasting sector? Could that message also be clear?

[Josée Verner, Conservative, Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC]

I would just like to correct one thing you said, Mr. Malo. The speech I delivered to the Canadian Association of Broadcasters was not an announcement. I talked about current realities and areas that the participants might want to give further thought to, but I never announced that I intended to issue policy directives or take any such measure in the near future.

[Luc Malo, Bloc, Verchères—Les Patriotes, QC]

Are you saying that no changes will be made to the broadcasting regulatory framework? In that case, foreign ownership will continue to be controlled based on the current rules.

[Josée Verner, Conservative, Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC]

What I can tell you with respect to foreign ownership is that we are still very determined to monitor the situation and that no change is planned as regards the current rules.

[Maria Mourani, Bloc, Ahuntsic, QC]

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

I would like to talk about film. As you know, on November 24, 2005, our Committee tabled a report on the film policy. That report basically denied the very existence of Quebec films. A motion put forward by the Bloc Québécois asked the House of Commons to acknowledge the existence of the Quebec film industry. Unfortunately, all the federalist parties voted against that motion.

Also, the Feature Film Fund's budget has not been increased in seven years.

Ms. Verner, you are a Quebecker and a Member of Parliament from Quebec; even though your government does not acknowledge the existence of the Quebec film industry, as the Minister of Canadian Heritage, do you acknowledge that it does? And, are you prepared to invest an additional $20 million in Quebec films?

[Josée Verner, Conservative, Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC]

Yes, we do have good Quebec films; I can tell you that as a Quebecker. But as a Canadian and as Minister of Canadian Heritage, I am aware of the concerns in the Quebec film industry. It's important to understand that the government has undertaken to provide, through Telefilm Canada, a portion of the funding made available to French-language films, and that obviously includes Quebec films.

[Maria Mourani, Bloc, Ahuntsic, QC]

You say that French-language films include Quebec films. Does that mean that Quebec films exist in their own right, or only as Canadian French-language films?

[Josée Verner, Conservative, Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC]

Ms. Mourani, you are talking about broad concepts, and I understand why you are. However, the fact remains that our commitment, as a country, is to French-language films.

[Maria Mourani, Bloc, Ahuntsic, QC]

Do you mean, French Canadian? The francophone market, but Canadian.

[Josée Verner, Conservative, Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC]

The francophone market, which obviously includes Quebec.

[Maria Mourani, Bloc, Ahuntsic, QC]

We know that one third of the funding is allocated to the francophone market, but Quebec films — and I'm not talking about the francophone market — bring in a great deal of money that benefits all of Canada. Unfortunately, however, it is underfunded compared to the anglophone market.

Will you invest an additional $20 million in the Quebec film industry, which you seem to acknowledge does exist but which, unfortunately, does not have adequate funding? At the same time, it brings in more money than Canadian films

[Josée Verner, Conservative, Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC]

We are aware of the concerns that have been expressed by the Quebec filmmaking industry, and our objective is to ensure that there is funding available for all French-language films in Canada.