Canadian Heritage Committee on Oct. 21st, 2024

[Anju Dhillon, Liberal, Dorval—Lachine—LaSalle, QC]

Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you to our witnesses for being here today.

I'd like to start with the accomplishments of the CBC, such as the Paralympic Games, which 11 million Canadians viewed. Then we also have the North American Indigenous Games, the Arctic Winter Games and the promotion of musicians who are struggling—Canadian musicians.

What would happen to all of these people if CBC were defunded? It's very easy to say if CBC were defunded, but how would private media interests affect Canadians, the consumption of information they get and the promotion of Canadian values, heritage and culture? What would happen to all of these things if the CBC were defunded, please?

[Catherine Tait]

On the sports side of the equation, CBC/Radio-Canada has made a commitment to gender parity in amateur sports coverage. That means we've gone from 4% of women covered in sport to 50%. In parasports, we've made an enormous commitment to coverage on a year-round basis.

The IOC considers CBC/Radio-Canada in the top five Olympic broadcasters in the world because of our year-round commitment to amateur sports. To be clear, if not for CBC/Radio-Canada—and we heard this from the Canadian Olympic Committee and the Canadian Paralympic Committee last week at a conference where they stated this without prompting from us—there would be no support for our amateur athletes in this country. It is profound.

Similarly, on the music side, without the Junos, l'Adisq, and all of the things that we do for emerging talent in music, writing and performing, we would be impoverishing this country.

[Anju Dhillon, Liberal, Dorval—Lachine—LaSalle, QC]

How do we protect Canadian values and culture, as opposed to private media organizations, who are going to look at their own private media interests? At least globally, CBC is still promoting Canada and Canadians.

[Catherine Tait]

I can't comment on what motivates private companies with respect to the values of the country.

I would say that CBC/Radio-Canada, with its programming like Lakay Nou, Pour toi Flora, Bones of Crows, Son of a Critch, Allegiance.... These are shows that represent Canada's values and talent. They are widely distributed on the world stage and speak enormously about our values of tolerance and truth.

Again, I do believe that without the CBC, there would be a huge impoverishment of our status and our place on the world stage.

[Anju Dhillon, Liberal, Dorval—Lachine—LaSalle, QC]

Radio-Canada is so important, because it keeps francophones connected across Canada as well.

Can you talk to us a little bit about the importance of protecting Radio-Canada? We talk about the CBC all the time, but I would mention Radio-Canada.

[Catherine Tait]

I said it earlier, and I think Martin Champoux said that without Radio-Canada in the minority language communities—I'm talking about francophones in Edmonton, in North Bay, all over the country—there would be no French news service available to them.

I tried to mention our role in the north. Natan Obed, president of ITK, said unequivocally at the conference last week here in Ottawa that there would be no Inuktitut in this country if not for the CBC. The CBC has been in the north since 1958, broadcasting in Inuktitut. Without the CBC, that language would have disappeared.

These are the kinds of things that the CBC does for this country, and I can only say that it would be a tragedy to lose them.

[Anju Dhillon, Liberal, Dorval—Lachine—LaSalle, QC]

Can you—

[The Chair, Liberal, Hedy Fry]

You have 30 seconds.

[Anju Dhillon, Liberal, Dorval—Lachine—LaSalle, QC]

Okay. Would you like to say anything about the Paris part of your trip and anything to clarify that?

[Catherine Tait]

I would just say that it's the role of the CEO to represent CBC/Radio-Canada. We had 185 employees there, many of them in a back office in Roissy, which is near the airport. I spent time with them—they never even go downtown—doing the technical, incredibly advanced work that we do to produce the games—a lot of which is done remotely, by the way—and also to meet with the Canadian Olympic Committee and all of the associated IOC executives.

Let us be clear. We have negotiated the broadcast rights and digital rights to the Olympics through Brisbane 2032, and that gives us a 10-year runway to support amateur sports and athletes in this country, an invaluable treasure, I believe, to this country.

[The Chair, Liberal, Hedy Fry]

Thank you, Ms. Tait.

I now go to our third round of five minutes, starting with Kevin Waugh from the Conservative Party.

[Kevin Waugh, Conservative, Saskatoon—Grasswood, SK]

Thank you, Madam Chair, and welcome again, Ms. Tait, along with Mr. Goldbloom.

Today we invited the senior management in compensation at CBC radio and CBC television, and I noticed that your opening statement didn't talk about the compensation. You talked about how accurate your news bureaus are, the trust that people have in you and how you're based on facts, but you never talked about the $18.4 million in bonuses, so let me start there again, if you don't mind, Ms. Tait.

With regard to 2022-23 bonuses, have you received your compensation package for 2022-23?

[Catherine Tait]

Are you talking about me, personally?

[Kevin Waugh, Conservative, Saskatoon—Grasswood, SK]

I'm talking about you personally, yes.

[Catherine Tait]

Just to be clear, for the record, the CEO of CBC/Radio-Canada does not participate in the payment plan that those 1,180 people participate in.

[Kevin Waugh, Conservative, Saskatoon—Grasswood, SK]

Okay. You don't have it yet.

[Catherine Tait]

The process is different. It goes from a recommendation from the board to the minister and from the minister to the PCO. To date, I have not heard back on that particular.

[Kevin Waugh, Conservative, Saskatoon—Grasswood, SK]

You mean for that year.

How about this year, 2023-24?

[Catherine Tait]

It's the same thing.

[Kevin Waugh, Conservative, Saskatoon—Grasswood, SK]

Here's what I'm thinking.

Those bonuses are going to be tied into your exit package in January, when you leave. It just seems natural to me. Your fiscal year-end is March. You haven't received your package. I suspect that in the previous five years, you got a bonus performance pay package. You haven't received one for 2022-23, 2023-24 and probably 2025 up to January, when you leave.

My worry is that we're not going to be able to scrutinize this because you're going to leave. Mr. Goldbloom and his board are going to recommend a bonus package for two and a half years and we won't get a shot at having you come back here in 2025 to talk about it. That's why Canadians are upset about the bonus package.

Let me give you a few examples, because I did a survey of my own. I know it's not Toronto and it may not be Vancouver and it may not be Montreal, but my constituent said that $1.4 billion a year and bonuses of $18.4 million are insanity. That came from Elaine.

Carol said she refuses to listen to or watch CBC News anymore. You know the metrics in Saskatchewan. Nobody watches or listens to the CBC.

Don said that it's totally unfair to taxpayers and hungry folks in our country.

Trevor said that nobody he knows watches or trusts the CBC anymore.

Rita said that it's a waste of taxpayers' money to fund bonuses for the executives.

Rose said that there should be a complete overhaul of the CEO and management.

Joanne said that the CBC has been a huge waste of taxpayers' money and to defund it as soon as possible.

Dan, a lifelong listener, said that the CBC has lost its way.

We had hundreds of responses from little old Saskatoon and 86% said to make major changes to the corporation or defund it entirely. That's 86% out of Saskatoon.

What do you say about those numbers?

[Catherine Tait]

I say I've travelled this country from north to west to east and I also have hundreds, if not thousands, of positive remarks on how important the CBC and Radio-Canada are in those communities that I have visited. In the north, in Yellowknife, in Whitehorse—

[Kevin Waugh, Conservative, Saskatoon—Grasswood, SK]

How about Saskatchewan?

[Catherine Tait]

That's from Saskatoon too, by the way—

[Kevin Waugh, Conservative, Saskatoon—Grasswood, SK]

Have you ever visited Saskatoon or Regina?

[Catherine Tait]

I have indeed—both.