Canadian Heritage Committee on Sept. 22nd, 2025

[The Chair, Liberal, Lisa Hepfner]

I call this meeting to order.

Welcome to meeting number two of the House of Commons Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage.

This is a hybrid format meeting, but I don't believe we have any participation online today. All in-person participants, please consult the guidelines written on the cards on the table. These are measures in place to help prevent audio and feedback incidents and to protect the health and safety of all participants, including the interpreters. You will notice a QR code on the card for a short awareness video if you need it.

Please wait until I recognize you by name before speaking. For those participating by video conference, click on the microphone icon.

I remind you that all comments should be addressed through the chair. If you wish to speak, please raise your hand in the room, and the clerk and I will manage the speaking order as best we can. We appreciate your patience and understanding in this regard.

Today, this committee is meeting to discuss committee business. The subcommittee met on Wednesday, September 17, to consider the business of the committee and agreed to make the following recommendations: first, that the committee invite the chairperson and chief executive officer of the CRTC, Vicky Eatrides—

[Rachael Thomas, Conservative, Lethbridge, AB]

I have a point of order.

[The Chair, Liberal, Lisa Hepfner]

Go ahead.

[Rachael Thomas, Conservative, Lethbridge, AB]

I'm sorry. That wouldn't be my preferred way to interrupt, but I just want to make sure this is a business meeting. Normally they're not in the public domain, so I want to check in with you, Madam Chair, and see where things are at with that. I notice that it says “public”. I also notice that we have more people in the room than we should have if it is not, in fact, public, so I'm just checking in.

[The Chair, Liberal, Lisa Hepfner]

It's a public meeting with committee business. I think there has to be a motion if we want to go in camera.

To reiterate, the subcommittee came up with three decisions:

1. That the committee invite the Chairperson and Chief Executive Officer of the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission, Vicky Eatrides, to appear on Wednesday, October 1, 2025, to provide an update on the implementation of the Online Streaming Act;

2. That the committee invite the President and Chief Executive Officer of CBC/Radio-Canada, Marie-Philippe Bouchard, to appear on Wednesday, October 8, 2025, to discuss CBC/Radio-Canada's priorities; and

3. That the committee give priority to a study on the effects of technological advances in artificial intelligence on the creative industries and that the committee members submit their witness lists to the clerk of the committee by Wednesday, September 24, 2025, at 5 p.m.

Is there someone who's willing to move a motion to adopt the report of the subcommittee? You all should have a copy of this in your inbox.

Mr. Al Soud, go ahead.

[Fares Al Soud, Liberal, Mississauga Centre, ON]

I move the motion to adopt the subcommittee report.

[The Chair, Liberal, Lisa Hepfner]

Is everyone in favour?

(Motion agreed to)

Next, you have also received in your inbox an operational budget to cover the cost of the meal for our meeting with the minister coming up this Wednesday. Will someone move to adopt the budget for the meeting on Wednesday? Does no one want food for our witnesses on Wednesday?

Mr. Myles, go ahead.

[David Myles, Liberal, Fredericton—Oromocto, NB]

I'm not totally sure how to say this. This is my first time.

I move to adopt the motion for the budget for the food for the meeting. Thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Lisa Hepfner]

That was well done.

[David Myles, Liberal, Fredericton—Oromocto, NB]

I'll get better.

[The Chair, Liberal, Lisa Hepfner]

Mrs. Thomas, did you have your hand up, or was that just the intervention you already made?

[Rachael Thomas, Conservative, Lethbridge, AB]

That was just the intervention I made, but I will put up my hand whenever there's an opportunity.

[The Chair, Liberal, Lisa Hepfner]

All right. It's over to you.

[Rachael Thomas, Conservative, Lethbridge, AB]

That's perfect.

Given that we are dealing with committee business, I would like to move a motion that was previously discussed on June 16. It's a motion to adopt several reports that were drafted during the last Parliament and then didn't get tabled because of prorogation. There was a friendly agreement around the table that the summer would be given for members to look at those reports and to make sure they were fine with them.

The motion reads as follows:

That, given that committee members, staff, the clerk, analysts, and witnesses worked hard to produce the report entitled “The holding of National Forum on the Media” during the first session of the 44th Parliament, and given that the government did not table a response because of the prorogation of Parliament:

the committee deem that it has undertaken and completed a study on “The holding of National Forum on the Media” pursuant to Standing Order 108, and that it adopt that report as a report from this committee;

pursuant to Standing Order 109, the committee request the government to table a comprehensive response to the report;

supplementary or dissenting reports that accompanied the report in the previous session of Parliament be tabled with the main report; and,

the Chair present the report to the House.

[The Chair, Liberal, Lisa Hepfner]

I'm sorry, Mrs. Thomas. May I clarify? Are you talking about the tech giants report?

[Rachael Thomas, Conservative, Lethbridge, AB]

No. I believe there are several reports that need to be moved and adopted from the previous Parliament. The tech giants report is one of them, but the one that I'm moving right now is about the national forum on the media.

[The Chair, Liberal, Lisa Hepfner]

Okay.

Mr. Champoux, go ahead.

[Martin Champoux, Bloc, Drummond, QC]

We could streamline our work. Since we already had this conversation in June, we are aware of the motions for the reports that Mrs. Thomas is talking about today. If everyone agrees and it's possible to do so, I think we could combine the three motions and adopt them as we had discussed doing a little earlier.

[Rachael Thomas, Conservative, Lethbridge, AB]

I have a quick point of order.

[The Chair, Liberal, Lisa Hepfner]

Mrs. Thomas, go ahead on a point of order.

[Rachael Thomas, Conservative, Lethbridge, AB]

I'm so sorry. We do not have interpretation, so we actually didn't get to hear what he said.

[The Chair, Liberal, Lisa Hepfner]

I will suspend for a couple of minutes while we figure this out. Thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Lisa Hepfner]

All right, we are back in session.

I hope everyone can hear the interpretation.

Can you repeat what you said, Mr. Champoux?

[Martin Champoux, Bloc, Drummond, QC]

Absolutely.

We've already debated the concurrence motions for the committee reports from the previous Parliament that Mrs. Thomas is proposing to vote on today. Since we've had the summer to read the reports, including members who weren't familiar with the content, I would propose, with the committee's agreement, that we save time by adopting all three motions together.

[The Chair, Liberal, Lisa Hepfner]

If we have unanimous consent to group the report on tech giants, the report on illegal sexual material online and the report on the national forum on the media, as Mr. Champoux has suggested, we will adopt all three reports together. Does everybody agree?