Mr. Chairman, my motion reads as follows:
That, pursuant to Standing Order 108(2), the Committee reports the following to the House at the first opportunity: The Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage recommends that the government commit to allocating to the Canadian Television Fund long-term funding that is indexed to private sector increases so that the share allocated to CBC/SRC productions is always at least 37% of total funding regardless of the government's follow-up to recent CRTC recommendations on the Canadian Television Fund.
First of all, let me explain to you the rationale for my motion. It comes on the heels of the CRTC's decision to split the CFT's funding into separate private- and public-sector streams. When the announcement was made, I admit that we were not fundamentally opposed to the idea at first, although we did have some reservations. Specifically, we were concerned that if the Fund was split into two streams, with the public-sector stream funded to the tune of about $120 million, as is currently the case, the number of public CFT-funded productions would decrease, while the number of private-sector productions would increase, in view of the funding allocated to this sector. Problems might occur. Under the current funding formula, funding from the State and from cable broadcasters ensured that the CBC received about a 37% share of the total funding, which allowed it to produce some rather lively programming. While the CBC/SRC receives a substantial share of the public sector funding envelope, other broadcasters like Télé-Québec also want their share of the envelope. Therefore, my concern is that we will end up with a system where there would be fewer public productions because of a funding shortfall, since the amount in the Fund will have remained at $120 million. This leads me to believe that the Fund should benefit from long-term funding that is indexed. Of course, we would need to determine how much funding should be allocated so that public productions can continue to be as lively as they are today.