Evidence of meeting #40 for Canadian Heritage in the 45th Parliament, 1st session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was spaces.
A video is available from Parliament.
Conservative
Rachael Thomas Conservative Lethbridge, AB
I'm sorry, but the interpreters are not able to interpret, because of sound quality.
Liberal
Liberal
Bienvenu-Olivier Ntumba Liberal Mont-Saint-Bruno—L’Acadie, QC
I'll keep talking to make sure that people can hear me. Can you hear me when I have my microphone closer to my mouth? Can the interpreters hear me properly?
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Lisa Hepfner
We'll try to continue the discussion. The connection is good, but the sound is cutting out from time to time.
Liberal
Bienvenu-Olivier Ntumba Liberal Mont-Saint-Bruno—L’Acadie, QC
Okay.
Ms. Santiago Keenan, I was saying that I have the honour today of being before you as a member of Parliament. This shows how the ties between Canada and communities around the world can have a lasting impact on entire generations.
My question is the following. How can cultural spaces [Technical difficulty—Editor] passing on the values and history of our communities while [Technical difficulty—Editor].
Bloc
Martin Champoux Bloc Drummond, QC
Madam Chair, there's an issue with the sound. It isn't good for the safety of the interpreters. It isn't just a comprehension issue. It's more of a sound quality issue, which can have an impact on them.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Lisa Hepfner
Okay.
Mr. Ntumba, I'll give the floor to Ms. Royer because we don't have much time left.
Liberal
Bienvenu-Olivier Ntumba Liberal Mont-Saint-Bruno—L’Acadie, QC
I would like to give my question [Technical difficulty—Editor] so that he can ask it for me.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Lisa Hepfner
We still can't hear you very well. You can send your questions to the committee.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Lisa Hepfner
We can ask them for you.
Ms. Royer, I'm going to give you the floor for the final two and a half minutes.
Liberal
Zoe Royer Liberal Port Moody—Coquitlam, BC
Okay. Yikes....
In the cities and communities I represent—Coquitlam, Port Moody, Anmore and Belcarra—we have two theatres. Those are a 200-seat theatre in Port Moody and a 257-seat theatre in Coquitlam, the Evergreen Cultural Centre black box.
Years ago, when I was still on city council, cities were doing these cultural mapping exercises. There are two that really stick out. One is Kelowna, and the other one is Coquitlam. In Coquitlam, they created an arts, culture and heritage strategic plan for 2015-30. It was everything from cultural mapping and community consultation to facilities planning and infrastructure assessment. It treated culture as an economic engine, growing a cultural ecosystem.
Where can the intersection be between cities that know and that have worked so closely with the many arts groups that make up their communities...? How can the federal government intersect with communities to identify...? We know that programming isn't the biggest challenge; it's the space. That's one.
I also really wanted to ask about the tax credit. How would it work in practice, and what would it look like? In the seconds left, who is the best person to answer?
I want to leave you with this as well. You're all such incredible witnesses. Please send us written statements that can be used in testimony. This will help enrich our study. Each one of you has so much to contribute to this, and I don't want anything to be left behind.
Grumms, take it away.
Performer and Creator, Creepy Boys, So.Glad Arts
Oh, I can't speak to the tax credit. Don't ask me. I'm not a venue guy.
Liberal
Artistic and Executive Director, Wavelength Music Arts Projects
In terms of access to cultural space, a theme that comes up often, at least in music [Inaudible—Editor] and related to live music, is that there's often a recommendation to make more use of underutilized space, but there's not often much recommendation on how that space can be activated.
I would encourage the federal government to work in partnership with the provincial and municipal governments to identify spaces that might be underutilized and that might benefit from adaptive reuse for culture. Then, identify local arts and culture partners and transfer, if not ownership, at least operation or long-term lease of these spaces to arts groups at nominal rent. You see this all over Europe. Obviously, it's a very different environment over there, in terms of urban space. In Europe, they have old coal stations, train stations, military barracks and a lot more available real estate really asking to be used.
It may not be the same in Canada, in terms of the available real estate, but I think that looking at creative ways of taking underused warehouses, buildings, power plants, libraries, churches.... Artists are creative. Artists are very good at making do with a little, which doesn't mean you shouldn't fund us, but we will always give you a great investment because we're used to doing a lot with a little.
Liberal
Conservative
Kevin Waugh Conservative Saskatoon South, SK
Thanks.
You know, Mr. Bunce, that's so true. I was a school board trustee. We have beautiful theatres in the Saskatoon public school system: Aden Bowman, after Robert Hinitt; Bedford Road; Walter Murray; and Evan Hardy. We spent hundreds of thousands of dollars, and we use them 10 months of the year.
Grumms, thank you. We don't often talk about a provincial scene. You mentioned Creative Saskatchewan. It wasn't always there. There were a lot of headwinds in our province.
I would encourage each and every one of you. Yes, you can write submissions to Canadian Heritage, but don't forget where you've come from. In Saskatchewan, we've had a long and tenuous battle with the arts community, if you don't mind, in my province. We've made some inroads in the last several years, but it does take time. Also, for municipalities, sit down with your mayors and councillors, because they know the spaces that could be available to each and every one of your groups, more so than you. They have a handle on what's open and what's not.
In saying that, Madam Chair, I would like to move a motion this afternoon on the matter at hand. I have copies in both official languages for the clerk to distribute to everyone.
It's in response to the recent CRTC decision proposing to increase the contribution requirement of some online streaming firms. In particular, it's important that we have a discussion here, in the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage. The decision will have a major impact, as we know, on the arts and culture sector in this country, and it is a matter of great importance at this committee. We have focused on Canadian culture in this country, and we know that this is very relevant to our study today on the state of creative and performance spaces across this country.
Additionally, it's very relevant right now because we know the minister is heading down to Washington to talk about CUSMA and the potential trade irritants of the Americans that we've heard about since the CRTC made the decision to go from 5% to 15% and billions of dollars.... I've had a couple of companies in my office in the last couple of days. We're going to lose billions of dollars in foreign production investment in this country. It's going to be affected by this major change in regulation, and I think we definitely need to hear from the minister on this.
We've heard from the government. They're stating that the CRTC is at arm's length. They're not. Subject to section 2:
...the Governor in Council may, by order, issue to the Commission directions of general application on broad policy matters with respect to
(a) any of the objectives of the broadcasting policy set out in subsection 3(1); or
(b) any of the objectives of the regulatory policy set out in subsection 5(2).
We're going to stand to lose significant foreign investment, in the billions of dollars. This is a major issue in this country. It will affect everybody in this room. I therefore move the following motion, which reads, in English: “ The Canadian radio-television commission, better known as the CRTC, has issued a decision to increase from 5% to 15% the contribution requirement of some online streaming firms, such as Netflix, Disney+, Amazon Prime, and that Ms. Vicky Eatrides, the CEO of CRTC, appear at the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage for 2 hours to explain this decision of 5% to 15%. And given that the Cabinet has ultimate authority over such decisions, the Honourable Marc Miller, Minister of Canadian Identity and Culture and Minister responsible for Official Languages, appear at this Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage for 2 hours to probe how Canada's interest will be protected, considering the profound impact that this decision will have on the CUSMA negotiations that will be entered into in the next month.”
Thank you, Madam Chair. I move this.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Lisa Hepfner
Thank you, Mr. Waugh.
I do not agree that this motion on CRTC's decision is relevant to today's study on creative and cultural spaces. Therefore, I will take this as a notice of motion and not move it today.
I'm going to suspend for a moment while we look at this.
Just to clarify, there's no debate—
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Lisa Hepfner
The Conservatives are challenging my decision.
You can take the floor.
Conservative
Rachael Thomas Conservative Lethbridge, AB
Thank you, Chair.
My colleague Mr. Waugh just moved a motion with regard to the streaming tax at a cost of 15% that will be applied to Canadians because of a CRTC decision, which is backed by this Liberal government. This will negatively impact the cost for consumers. It will negatively impact investment with regard to business in the creative industry. It will impact our trade relationship with the United States of America.
Given that it has to do with creative spaces, artistic expression and support for the industry, it does, in fact, directly relate to the matter at hand, so I would challenge your ruling, Chair.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Lisa Hepfner
Okay. That is a dilatory motion, so we will call the vote.
(Ruling of the chair sustained: yeas 7; nays 4 [See Minutes of Proceedings])
Seeing that we're out of time, I will thank the witnesses for their incredible testimony today.
Go ahead, Mr. Champoux.
Bloc
Martin Champoux Bloc Drummond, QC
Madam Chair, we just voted on your ruling. However, I just want to make sure that the notice of motion read by Mr. Waugh was tabled. We didn't reject this motion, since we didn't vote on it. It's still on the agenda for debate. Is that right?