Yes, as I mentioned, Ms. Tait is coming to this committee on November 2 for one hour. That is correct. She is coming to speak to us with regard to her general overall mandate.
The subamendment that has been moved, as the chair has asked me to stay focused on, has to do with Ms. Tait coming specifically with regard to the CBC's coverage of the conflict taking place in Gaza. That is the purpose of the subamendment that has been put forward.
It also asks that Ms. Tait come for two hours, which would give us, hopefully, enough time to ask very important questions on behalf of Canadians—in particular, very important questions on behalf of the Jewish community in Canada, which has very much been underserved by the CBC.
With that being the case and with that being the subamendment that my colleague Mr. Waugh has moved, it is very important to note that this is distinctly different from the motion that was previously moved at this committee quite some time ago to bring in Ms. Tait with regard to her general mandate.
No doubt, I think, we look forward to having her here on November 2. Mr. Julian, of course, has indicated that he wishes to praise her for the type of coverage that the CBC has been providing. Of course, my Conservative colleagues and I have indicated that we have some tougher questions to ask her. We're looking for clarification on behalf of the Canadian public. We believe in the role of the official opposition and the accountability mechanism that is in place there, because that is what sustains a strong democracy.
Speaking of which, in the article she wrote as a guest columnist for the Toronto Star, Ms. Catherine Tait actually wrote about what democracy requires. Interestingly enough—the committee might desire to know this—she said, “It's essential that all news organizations tackle these challenges together.” She's talking about the challenges of being truthful and being credible. She's talking about the challenges of gaining trust.
She goes on to say, “We need to make sure that Canadians know where they can access verified, reliable news and information about their neighbourhoods, their communities, and their country.”
I would agree with Ms. Tait on that statement. There's no doubt that we do need to know where we can go for verified, reliable news and information. Given that the CBC has misreported numerous times over the last number of weeks, and given that the CBC is outright refusing to call Hamas a terrorist organization, I do have to wonder if she would count herself into the classification of “verified, reliable news and information”.
I think Canadians deserve to know what her thought process is in that regard and what she is hoping to convey through her news coverage, which is currently lacking.
We were talking about democracy and, of course, the role that the official opposition plays in that. She goes on to say, “It's what Canadians deserve—and it's what our democracy requires.”
Again I would agree with her. I would say that she is absolutely correct that Canadians do deserve verified and reliable news and information and that Canadians do, in fact, require this in order for our democracy to thrive. Those things are true.
Further to that, in this article, she outlines the importance of building trust. I would agree with that as well. I would say that there is an opportunity for our news sources across the nation to restore trust with the Canadian public.
Where she and I might deviate is that my perception is that in order to restore trust, you have to tell the truth. She would probably argue that actually you can do your best to restore trust by just retelling or remaking the truth. I would disagree.
With that said, there is an opportunity to hear directly from her, to understand the intent that she functions with and to understand the intent that the others within the CBC function with.
Whether that's the ombudsman or Mr. Achi, who is responsible for journalistic standards, there is an opportunity for all three of them to come to this committee, be asked good questions, and be given the opportunity to express to us the strategy they employ within our public broadcasting system.
Further to that, there's an opportunity for them to tell us how they intend to use that strategy to best serve Canadians and restore the trust that Ms. Tait discusses in this article and outlines as being incredibly important as we continue to function in a democratic system and want to protect it.
This is why it is so important that Mr. Waugh moved this subamendment and that it not be disregarded.
I know that Mr. Julian tried to take the CBC, and Ms. Tait in particular, out of the original motion. I recognize that he for some reason doesn't wish for her—