Canadian Heritage Committee on April 21st, 2026

[Martin Champoux, Bloc, Drummond, QC]

We've been talking a great deal about the infamous regulatory burden. You touched on it too. Representatives from Cogeco, Bell and Quebecor have spoken at length to this committee and to other committees about the heavy red tape imposed on traditional media.

As you said earlier, Ms. Jamet, the regulations were drawn up decades ago. They need to be rethought in order to reflect the current realities.

What does this burden mean for broadcasters in terms of the money or resources needed just to manage the constraints imposed by the licence conditions?

[Caroline Jamet]

There are dozens and hundreds of pages and forms to fill in. This takes up resources that could be used for other things. It's incredible what we need to report. Of course, there are also financial contributions.

All this is happening in an environment where foreign platforms remain free of any obligations. We're not only facing a hit to our advertising revenue and audiences, but also an extremely competitive environment. We must grapple with this competitive environment and also contend with a two‑tier regulatory system. On the one hand, some platforms have no regulations to follow. On the other hand, we ourselves are in a “hyper‑regulated” environment.

We also sense a desire to add even more regulations. The Canadian system can, in principle, be regulated. However, the regulations keep piling up. At a certain point, we can see that the situation is real. Things need to change. Adjustments need to be made. A significant reduction in regulations is necessary so that we can thrive in our environment and play our role. Foreign platforms won't be the ones talking to Canadians and Quebeckers about local issues by broadcasting local content created by local people.

As a country, we really need to protect this.

[Martin Champoux, Bloc, Drummond, QC]

Thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Lisa Hepfner]

Thank you.

Mr. Généreux, you have the floor for five minutes.

[Bernard Généreux, Conservative, Côte-du-Sud—Rivière-du-Loup—Kataskomiq—Témiscouata, QC]

Thank you, Madam Chair.

I would like to thank all the witnesses.

Mr. Simard and Mr. Lorrain, can you tell me approximately how much advertising space the Government of Canada has bought from your radio stations in recent years?

[Martin Simard]

The last time we checked, it was zero.

[Bernard Généreux, Conservative, Côte-du-Sud—Rivière-du-Loup—Kataskomiq—Témiscouata, QC]

Did I understand you correctly? Did you say “zero”?

[Martin Simard]

Yes.

[Bernard Généreux, Conservative, Côte-du-Sud—Rivière-du-Loup—Kataskomiq—Témiscouata, QC]

Okay.

[Martin Simard]

To my knowledge, it's extremely rare.

[Bernard Généreux, Conservative, Côte-du-Sud—Rivière-du-Loup—Kataskomiq—Témiscouata, QC]

Ms. Jamet, does the same apply to Cogeco Media's private radio stations?

[Caroline Jamet]

We noticed that it isn't zero.

The government invested $76 million in advertising, but only $2 million was allocated to radio stations across the country. On our end, major cuts were made in advertising. Just give me a moment. I'll try to find the figure.

[Bernard Généreux, Conservative, Côte-du-Sud—Rivière-du-Loup—Kataskomiq—Témiscouata, QC]

My point is more along the following lines.

The Government of Canada has made significant cuts to the funding allocated to media outlets. Hebdos Québec told us the same thing last week. In fact, it's almost peanuts.

When it comes to fairness, we can see that the government uses a variety of media to send messages to Canadians. Everyone needs a piece of the pie. However, we can now see that 75% of contracts end up in the United States. That's really the case. By the way, I imagine that the same applies to Bell.

Do you have any comments on this?

[Jean-Philippe Pineault]

I believe that the Canadian news media should be the preferred way to communicate with Canadians.

[Bernard Généreux, Conservative, Côte-du-Sud—Rivière-du-Loup—Kataskomiq—Témiscouata, QC]

Ms. Jamet spoke about a tax credit. Other witnesses previously spoke about the possibility of both the Canadian government and also companies obtaining a tax credit for advertising purchased in Canada.

Should the Canadian news media receive preferential treatment in terms of numbers or financial support?

[Jean-Philippe Pineault]

At the very least, it's necessary to rectify the current irregularity whereby advertisements placed on foreign platforms can qualify as tax deductible.

[Bernard Généreux, Conservative, Côte-du-Sud—Rivière-du-Loup—Kataskomiq—Témiscouata, QC]

Up until now, we've repeatedly heard that radio stations face a tax disadvantage. The Quebec government has just corrected an anomaly considered quite significant by this media sector.

Mr. Simard and Ms. Jamet, do you think that the federal government should do the same thing?

[Martin Simard]

Yes. Fixing this anomaly would be a priority. This would make things easier for our private radio stations at this time.

[Caroline Jamet]

Absolutely. These days, it feels as if we have two‑tier journalism. It isn't right that radio journalism lacks the full recognition given to print journalism. We play the same role and the current situation is completely unfair.

[Bernard Généreux, Conservative, Côte-du-Sud—Rivière-du-Loup—Kataskomiq—Témiscouata, QC]

I'll ask a question that the witnesses can answer in turn.

Mr. Simard, Ms. Jamet, the Bell representatives, Ms. Cena and Mr. Gonez, are you receiving money from the Google fund currently in place for journalism?

[Martin Simard]

Yes. Two of our markets are eligible for it. The criteria are quite strict, especially for small radio stations in the regions, where often only one journalist does the work of [Technical difficulty—Editor] and our radio. We can't get much more than this. We've managed to obtain small amounts only in Rivière‑du‑Loup and Saint‑Georges.

[Michel Lorrain, President and broadcasting consultant, MLorrain Conseils, Groupe Radio Simard]

Let me clarify something.

In the case of Groupe Radio Simard, [Technical difficulty—Editor] dollars a year on news operating costs, which total around $750,000 for an organization such as Groupe Radio Simard. This amounts to a small contribution. We're light‑years away from making some of these radio stations profitable.

We were just talking about media deserts. I can tell you about the La Pocatière region. Actually, I think that you know this market quite well, Mr. Généreux. The Kamouraska RCM has 20,000 residents, including around 10,000 residents in La Pocatière. This station remains in operation as a result of an equalization system, so to speak, established by Groupe Radio Simard.

Unless we find ways to provide more support to these small markets, such as the Chibougamau market that Ms. Jamet referred to earlier, these radio stations will inevitably end up facing abandonment, closure or the need to cut even more services to the community. It's mathematical.

[Bernard Généreux, Conservative, Côte-du-Sud—Rivière-du-Loup—Kataskomiq—Témiscouata, QC]

I completely agree with you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Lisa Hepfner]

Mr. Généreux, your time is up.

[Bernard Généreux, Conservative, Côte-du-Sud—Rivière-du-Loup—Kataskomiq—Témiscouata, QC]

Is it already up?