Madam Speaker, I rise today to speak in opposition to this portion or grouping of Bill C-17, specifically clauses 18 to 20 which authorize the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation to borrow up to $25 million, plus more by special legislation if necessary.
When will the Liberal government and the country understand that this borrowed money is in fact debt capital and not equity capital which at the end of the day will simply increase the government's deficit?
The government in this fiscal year will add $41 billion to the debt which will take it over the $550 billion mark. It is this debt and the interest to service the debt that have helped to create the recession and put 1.7 million Canadians out of work and forced countless businesses to close their doors.
Why does the government continue to lend money it does not have? When will it face up to the reality that just as Canadians are forced to curtail spending so must the government?
Unaccountable crown corporations like the CBC sail through these troubled times spending money believing that there is plenty more where that came from.
In the finance department's March 16 news release regarding Bill C-17 the finance minister stated:
The act proposes to implement initiatives in support of our twin objectives of job creation and deficit reduction.
I put this question to all members of the House and all taxpayers watching this on TV: How can $25 million in borrowed money, in addition to the $1.1 billion of taxpayers' money that the CBC currently receives, possibly reduce the deficit? Is the CBC going to hire more people? Will the tax revenue from income create a profit for the government?
This is a contradiction in terms. It is like saying the more money we spend the more money we will have in savings. The CBC is not a made for profit corporation. Therefore any amount of money that we give it will add to the deficit. It is a corporation whose ratings have dropped and the only way it generates any revenues at all is by playing U.S. produced shows which do not satisfactorily portray Canadian culture.
It is this generosity with other people's money that creates the pie in the sky Liberal logic which takes the emphasis off the real problems in this country, high debt, high interest costs to service this debt and high taxes to pay for wasteful grants and subsidies.
Liberal government members have said that 85 per cent of real jobs are created in the private sector. Therefore I submit they would do a better job creating long term, meaningful jobs with $1.1 billion in tax reduction rather than subsidizing the CBC with $1.1 billion.
If the government truly wants to promote Canadian identity and pride, let the private sector create long term, meaningful jobs and put Canadians back to work. The government should regulate, administer, pass laws and defend borders, but stop interfering with the marketplace by endlessly funding crown corporations and short term job creation programs that benefit the few and not society as a whole.
If the federal government sees a vital role for Canadian content on TV then regulate it, do not pay for it. Let the law of supply and demand dictate which shows stay on and which shows are cut.
I believe it is time to consider a partial privatization of the CBC. The fact is that under the present situation Canadians are not watching.
At a recent licence renewal hearing CRTC chairman Keith Spicer told reporters that CBC's English network saw its audience share dip to 13.5 per cent in 1992-93 from 15 per cent in 1990-91. Mr. Spicer went on to say: "Your ratings are plummeting. They are falling like a rock".
This is a perfect example of what happens when companies lack a competitive atmosphere. There is less incentive and lower overall quality of the product. Private sector companies in this position have shut their doors and have closed forever. This is not the case, however, with the CBC which has guaranteed government backing. With Bill C-17 it will have yet another option to borrow.
When will the government acknowledge that it is in fact part of the problem and not the solution? When will the government stop the unlimited funding of the CBC? When will the government create the atmosphere and environment for investment and stop making investments with money that it does not have? The private sector understands this. It is time that cabinet ministers did too.
Private sector growth generates confidence and opportunity. It sends a message to investors that this country is able and willing to compete.
The Liberal government should send a message to foreign and domestic investors, lenders and businesses that Canada welcomes competition in a fair marketplace, free from government interference, subsidies and grants. This signal alone would bring in equity capital for businesses and the government could get out of businesses it knows nothing about such as the CBC, Petro-Canada and Canada Post.
The CBC presently pays millions of dollars to broadcast American comedies. Mr. Spicer stated: "The network is merely tinkering with this direction in the face of crisis". Where is the accountability or the justification?
As a businessman I know that corporations both public and private over time begin to lose their overall objectives. Perhaps Mr. Spicer's quote is an indication that the CBC has itself moved away from its original objective of providing quality Canadian programs, promoting Canadian culture and talent.
Privatization of the CBC in whole or in part would, as Mr. Spicer said, force the company off the road to oblivion without a rescue plan.
With privatization the performance of the CBC would be subject to market rules with market benefits and market sanctions. Even partial privatization would reduce the deficit and still maintain jobs. Time and again private corporations have proven that they can operate more efficiently and effectively than crown corporations. A dollar spent in the private sector requires three dollars for the same service in the public sector.
At risk money motivates, government money obligates but it obligates the wrong people, the taxpayers, without enough say. Decisions in the private sector must be made quickly to take advantage of investment opportunities as they arise. Companies that make these decisions subsequently suffer or gain from the consequences. Crown corporations have long been criticized for their inability to make these decisions. It is largely due to the lack of incentive, motivation and accountability because the government acts as a safety net.
Who gets fired if a costly program never airs? Who ever hears about it? Who ultimately pays for the extravagance and the errors?
Government involvement gives these corporations a kind of financial longevity that corporations in the private sector do not have. Therefore the longevity becomes a burden to taxpayers. This promotes unfair competition within industry sectors, those who have to answer to shareholders and those who have an endless supply of taxpayers' money.
Privatization would also improve the government's financial position. Selling assets would allow this government to reduce its monetary requirements for the year, which for this year will be $41 billion, and repay part of our accumulated debt of over $516 billion.
Privatization in whole or in part of the CBC, not $25 million in borrowing authority, would help the government truly meet the so-called twin objectives of the finance minister of job creation and deficit reduction.
As of eleven o'clock this morning, the Doomsday clock calculated the national debt at $516,293,742,299.79. Since 11 o'clock this morning the debt has continued to grow at a rate of $1,473.50 per second with a debt per taxpayer of $36,730.20.
