Evidence of meeting #33 for Canadian Heritage in the 40th Parliament, 3rd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was cbc.
A recording is available from Parliament.
4:10 p.m.
Bloc
4:10 p.m.
Assistant Deputy Minister, Citizenship and Heritage, Department of Canadian Heritage
No, I am not saying it is part of arts and culture grants, but it is a grant provided by the department.
4:10 p.m.
Assistant Deputy Minister, Cultural Affairs, Department of Canadian Heritage
By the same token, Ms. Lavallée, I can tell you that the audiovisual sector, for instance, receives tax credits, as you know, for film and television. That amount does not appear anywhere in the estimates, but it represents nearly $270 million.
4:10 p.m.
Bloc
Carole Lavallée Bloc Saint-Bruno—Saint-Hubert, QC
I would appreciate it if you would include it on the side and explain it to me, because—
4:10 p.m.
Assistant Deputy Minister, Cultural Affairs, Department of Canadian Heritage
I completely agree with you that it can be difficult to pinpoint how much is invested in the arts and culture, but we can provide you with that information.
4:10 p.m.
NDP
Charlie Angus NDP Timmins—James Bay, ON
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you for coming before us. I'm looking at the CBC/Radio-Canada request of $46.2 million in augmented funding. I understand that they will add to that the $13.8 million identified in savings, which would bring us to $60 million. So that would put us basically at the status quo of where they are every year; coming into the spring they ask for $60 million.
Is that how you're going to break it down, the $46.2 million in the request and then the $13.8 million in terms of identified savings within the corporation itself?
4:10 p.m.
Associate Deputy Minister, Department of Canadian Heritage
The $13.8 million is part of a cross-government clawback, because in the 2009-10 exercise, additional moneys had been put in the CBC budget to cover salary increases. But with the budget 2010 freeze on salary increases, the figure had to be adjusted downwards to be able to cover that one, as it was in the supplementary estimates (B) for the department as a whole.
4:10 p.m.
NDP
Charlie Angus NDP Timmins—James Bay, ON
Thank you.
Every year we're in a situation where CBC asks for this top-up, and then it's not sure if we're getting it, and then usually at the last minute the money's supplied. It's very difficult to do planning when you're a national broadcaster if you're always having to second-guess yourself.
Is there any plan to put the $60 million into the base funding of CBC so we don't have to undertake this process every year?
4:10 p.m.
Associate Deputy Minister, Department of Canadian Heritage
Mr. Angus, the answer I gave before is that in fact the CBC has a mixed funding model. Its overall appropriation is somewhere in the range of $1.1 billion, but it also benefits from a full range of government programs, and those government programs of course fluctuate and go up and down every single year and all the rest of it. The other thing that fluctuates is of course their earnings on commercial revenue.
So they'll continue to have a mixed funding model, and that would include the $60 million.
4:10 p.m.
NDP
Charlie Angus NDP Timmins—James Bay, ON
Last year they were looking to get the government to give them their permission so they could go for bridge financing because of the huge shortfall of the recession on advertising revenue. Has there been any discussion with them on the need to secure similar bridge funding this year?
4:10 p.m.
Associate Deputy Minister, Department of Canadian Heritage
I'm not aware of the full details. My suggestion would be to talk directly to CBC/Radio-Canada on that issue.
4:10 p.m.
NDP
Charlie Angus NDP Timmins—James Bay, ON
Okay.
Last week at our committee hearing the parliamentary secretary raised the suggestion that maybe it's time the Government of Canada got out of paying for broadcasting, and he referred to the billion dollars that's in the platform...or to support CBC and suggested that the money be given to CBC's competitors.
Has there been any discussion within the department about cutting off the funding envelope for CBC and giving it to...? He said that the private sector would make use of that money.
4:10 p.m.
NDP
Charlie Angus NDP Timmins—James Bay, ON
I'll read the quote:
We invest over a billion government dollars, as you know, into a stage, when in fact the private sector would not only make use of that stage...they have so many already, and reinvest all of those dollars into Canadian content.
He says further:
Maybe I wasn't clear enough. The $1.1 billion, plus a whole bunch of other stuff that we're investing into the public broadcaster: should we look at reorganizing that in some fashion so we could put more money into content? Would companies like Corus match those dollars?
Has there been discussion within the department about taking CBC's funding envelope and spending it on CBC's competitors?
November 30th, 2010 / 4:10 p.m.
Assistant Deputy Minister, Cultural Affairs, Department of Canadian Heritage
Mr. Angus, obviously I can't comment on statements that were made. I can tell you, though, that the Broadcasting Act, section 3, adopted by Parliament, clearly says that the broadcasting system is made up of public, community, and private.
That's how we deal with whether.... So we haven't looked at that particular issue.
4:10 p.m.
Assistant Deputy Minister, Cultural Affairs, Department of Canadian Heritage
Oh, have people advocated that in public fora? I've heard that. It's not just parliamentarians; it's others as well. But what I'm saying is that the act right now stipulates that the broadcasting system has to be made up of three components, including the public component.
4:15 p.m.
NDP
Charlie Angus NDP Timmins—James Bay, ON
I see there have been a number of requests from the Museum of Civilization, the Museum of Nature, the museum of technology, for funding. We see right across Canada that the small museums are also facing a number of issues.
Under the program, when the previous Liberal government had it up to 25% in any given year, it was not utilized or given out, and that money was brought back into the department, and then about three years ago the Conservatives took that 25% and just cut it. Yet, whenever I meet with museum officials in small towns, they have a real desire to access the funds.
Is the funding for small museums across Canada going to remain stable? Is that money being spent? Do you know what the take-up rate is on that funding?
4:15 p.m.
Assistant Deputy Minister, Citizenship and Heritage, Department of Canadian Heritage
I'm not aware of some of the background you've just mentioned. Certainly the museum assistance program, which I suspect is the main funding mechanism you've identified, has remained stable for a number of the previous years. We're in the process now of moving through the call on that for the upcoming year, with the program. I'm not aware of any changes to the funding--
4:15 p.m.
NDP
Charlie Angus NDP Timmins—James Bay, ON
Do you know, though, how much is given out in a particular year and how much is brought back to Treasury Board?
4:15 p.m.
Associate Deputy Minister, Department of Canadian Heritage
In 2006-07, it was $10.9 million; in 2009-10, $15.6 million. The increase over that period was 43%. So that's the kind of performance on that program.
