Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Dr. Rabinovitch, I was pleased to hear you encourage us to look at the history of the CTF. I believe that Mr. Stursberg did an excellent job of doing that. Unfortunately, the message isn't getting out there. Historically what happened was that the cable companies received a benefit, and that was less regulation on their subscriber fees. In return, they agreed to support the Canadian independent production industry, which benefits all Canadians and allows us to view in public broadcasting a mirror image of ourselves as a society.
In looking at the history, we also look at a history of a regulatory framework that was created by previous governments. And as long as nobody challenged the circulars or the regulations, we didn't have a problem. Today somebody's challenging that framework. There are certainly suggestions that the circulars that were issued are perhaps not legally enforceable. Some in the industry, although I might disagree with them, are suggesting that even the regulations might not be enforceable due to the fact that they believe it's taxation, not simply fees.
Perhaps I could have you comment on something along the lines of what Mr. Masse raised. Again, we don't want to over-regulate the industry, but when we have these threats to funding agreements that were entered into in good faith, there are challenges they place on the CBC, as well as on others who depend on this funding for their livelihoods.