Canadian Heritage Committee on Nov. 5th, 2020

[Steven Guilbeault, Liberal, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

Thank you for your question.

It was quite a challenge. We quickly recognized that people receive grants year after year from the Department of Canadian Heritage—that doesn't mean that they are always the same—and the same goes for the Canada Council for the Arts, Telefilm Canada and the Canada Media Fund.

We realized that, if we did not help organizations that normally do not receive funding, it would be very difficult for them to get through the crisis. That's why we set aside almost 40% of the $500-million envelope for organizations that we do not normally fund.

So we conducted a thorough and very broad search with our partners in order to reach those organizations. I spoke about that a little earlier. We created a new website and a simplified application form so that those organizations could quickly become eligible and receive funds. It allowed us, for example, to fund seasonal museums that Canadian Heritage does not normally fund.

It was a very interesting exercise for us, but it shows that we have a lot of work to do in terms of diversity in our ability to reaching organizations of that kind.

[Lyne Bessette, Liberal, Brome—Missisquoi, QC]

Thank you.

In phase 2, local media are receiving significant funding through the Canada Periodical Fund. In my constituency, I know that a number of independent newspapers, like the Sherbrooke Record, are able to continue their operations because of that assistance.

Can you tell us how local media were affected by the pandemic and why that assistance was necessary?

[Steven Guilbeault, Liberal, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

The media in general, and local media in particular, were hit hard by the pandemic, essentially because of the major decrease in advertising revenue. The people who normally buy advertising in those media were themselves facing significant financial difficulties.

Part of our emergency assistance was set aside for the media so that we could support the sector and help it through the crisis. We did other things to help the sector, such as the Department of Health's advertising campaign on COVID-19. The federal government bought advertising in local media all across the country, in print media, in radio and in television.

I could find the exact figures, but several hundred print media and local radio outlets all across the country received that support.

[The Chair, Liberal, Scott Simms]

Thank you, Mrs. Bessette and Minister Guilbeault.

Mrs. Desbiens, the hon. member for Beauport—Côte-de-Beaupré—Île d'Orléans—Charlevoix, has the floor for six minutes.

[Caroline Desbiens, Bloc, Beauport—Côte-de-Beaupré—Île d’Orléans—Charlevoix, QC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Good evening, Minister, I am happy to be talking to you. Let me take this opportunity to thank you and your team, because you have worked very hard to try to keep the world of culture alive. That was no easy task, I recognize, and I wanted to acknowledge your efforts. I know those efforts were great.

Earlier, we were reading that you met with almost 4,000 participants during your consultations in September and October. You achieved a satisfaction rate of 77%. When I brought home my report showing a mark of 85%, my father told me that it was good, but he asked what happened to the other 15%. He was very strict. Your goal was not to get a mark of 100%, I recognize that, but still, 23% did not get the call or were not reached.

What are your plans for reaching those people quickly, because time is of the essence for them?

[Steven Guilbeault, Liberal, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

I agree with you. We can always do better and we would love to help as many artists, cultural workers, and cultural and artistic organizations as possible.

As an example, I can tell you about major festivals, which we did not manage to help in phase 1 or phase 2 of the emergency fund. We were not able to find an program with an adequate fit. There are all kinds of major festivals all across the country.

So we are working on it, and I hope that I will be able to announce something along those lines soon. It is certainly one of the sectors where we have to do more, and the quicker the better.

[Caroline Desbiens, Bloc, Beauport—Côte-de-Beaupré—Île d’Orléans—Charlevoix, QC]

Okay.

I am still concerned about the base, the artists who are the source of the creativity. If artists cannot create, we are going to lose many of our great musicians, our great actors and our great directors. Some of those artists have turned to other jobs because of a lack of income.

What mechanisms do you have to make sure that the money gets to the artists?

[Steven Guilbeault, Liberal, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

We have established a number of financial mechanisms to support the people, the ecosystem, the organizations and the companies.

Of course, another one we can think of is the wage subsidy—

[Caroline Desbiens, Bloc, Beauport—Côte-de-Beaupré—Île d’Orléans—Charlevoix, QC]

Yes, you are talking about the Canada Emergency Response Benefit, or CERB, which will soon be ending.

[Steven Guilbeault, Liberal, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

No, I am talking about the emergency wage subsidy. I will talk about the CERB in a minute.

Mr. Piché and Ms. Laurendeau, I don't recall the exact percentage of cultural organizations that received the emergency wage subsidy. As I recall, it was about 75% but Mr. Piché would be able to give us the exact figure.

[Jean-Stéphen Piché]

Yes, it was 75% of the organizations.

[Steven Guilbeault, Liberal, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

Right. It allowed those organizations to keep artists, cultural workers and technical people employed.

Then, as you pointed out, the Canada Emergency Response Benefit is about to expire, but it is going to be replaced by a “CERB 2.0”, called the Canada Recovery Benefit. We also announced that it would be available at least until the middle of next year, because the situation is going to remain very uncertain in the area through the coming months.

[Caroline Desbiens, Bloc, Beauport—Côte-de-Beaupré—Île d’Orléans—Charlevoix, QC]

Thank you, Mr. Minister.

Ms. Laurendeau, I would like to make a connection between tourism and culture, not only in urban centres, but also specifically outside them. The two are dependent and interdependent variables.

In 2008, there was an assistance fund called the Marquee Tourism Events Program. People on the ground tell me that the program was a huge help during the crisis of 2008.

Do you think that a program like that could quickly be put back on track?

[Hélène Laurendeau]

That is one of the replacement solutions currently under study. The minister spoke about major events. With our colleagues from the department of industry, we are in the process of considering measures that would bring marquee events and the recovery of tourism together.

We are not in a position to tell you exactly what that will be, but those matters are being studied and, actually,we are indeed focusing on the former program.

[Caroline Desbiens, Bloc, Beauport—Côte-de-Beaupré—Île d’Orléans—Charlevoix, QC]

Thank you.

Mr. Minister, I have one last question for you.

Given that the benefits are going to expire, what cause for hope do the artists have? We know that audiences will not be back for a long time and that the public has fundamentally altered its behaviour. We also know that there will not be a vaccine in the short term.

Before everything gets back on track, do you think that a three-year program, for example, tailored to the size of audiences in the venues, could be put into place?

[Steven Guilbeault, Liberal, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

I know that some people are asking for those programs to be extended over very long periods of time.

Let's take the CERB, for example. We have already extended it three times, because people were saying that they are not out of the woods yet and still need help. We are extending it, in a different form, at least until the middle of next year.

The situation is changing so quickly from province to province and from moment to moment that it is difficult to announce three-year measures when you do not know what the situation will be next week or next month.

[Caroline Desbiens, Bloc, Beauport—Côte-de-Beaupré—Île d’Orléans—Charlevoix, QC]

It is not easy for producers and broadcasters either.

[The Chair, Liberal, Scott Simms]

Thank you very much.

[Caroline Desbiens, Bloc, Beauport—Côte-de-Beaupré—Île d’Orléans—Charlevoix, QC]

Thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Scott Simms]

Ms. McPherson, you have six minutes, please.

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Thank you, Chair.

I would like to thank you, Minister, for joining us. I know it was not easy to get on the call. Certainly there have been some technical challenges for all of us. Thank you for being patient and taking the time to be here. Thank you as well for all of the work you have done for the cultural sector over the past eight months.

Like you, I did some round tables. As I'm sure you know, Edmonton Strathcona is the heart of the artistic community in Edmonton. We have a number of theatres. A number of festivals happen within my riding. At a round table, one thing I heard from artists and cultural workers was about a deep need for long-term support, knowing they will not be going back to the theatre and knowing that we will not have people in venues for some time.

Did you also hear from cultural workers that a basic income would be one of the key things they would be looking for, going forward?

[Steven Guilbeault, Liberal, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

As I was just telling your colleague, this issue of long-term support has been coming up. Our response is that the situation evolves so quickly it's difficult to plan for the long term, but we've said from the beginning that we would be there and we would have their backs. I think we've shown that we have been there. We will continue to be there to support them until we're back to something that looks like a new normal.

If it takes six more months or a year, well, the government will be there. The Prime Minister has been very clear on that. We won't let them down and we haven't.

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Thank you for that. I would like to echo my colleague when she said that the lack of knowledge of what we're facing affects government, obviously, but it affects artists even more. I would like to just highlight that for her as well and to press you to make sure that we are keeping artists and cultural workers as up to speed as we possibly can so that they are not having to deal with this uncomfortable way of not knowing.

My other questions are around museums. I've spoken to a number of different people who have talked about how museums have been particularly hard hit. When we look at the estimates, we see that there were decreases in funding for many of the museums. I'm wondering why those decreases are in place. Given the COVID-19 pandemic and the challenges that museums are facing, is additional funding possible for this fiscal year? Will the museums assistance program be expanded to provide long-term funding to get through the pandemic? If so, what's the plan?

[Steven Guilbeault, Liberal, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

On the first one, where you say that funding has been going down for museums, can you be more specific?

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Absolutely. In the estimates we were given, the Canadian Museum of History, the Canadian Museum for Human Rights and the Canadian Museum of Nature are seeing decreases of 4.6%, 5.4% and 7.5% respectively.