I'll turn to our budget submission. There are three tangible actions we encourage the government to take to strengthen the Canadian production sector.
First, the government must honour its commitment to increasing funding to the CBC, and those contributions should be made permanent. The government committed to fill an investment gap in public broadcasting during the last election campaign, and it should do so in this year's budget. With additional funding, the CBC will be better able to implement a modernized mandate. This renewed mandate should include a formal commitment to Canadian independent production, providing a framework to ensure that Canadian producers retain meaningful rights in the shows they produce so that they can share in the success of their own programs.
The Canadian film or video production tax credit, or CPTC, is one of the most important tools the federal government has to support Canadian content. However, the credit is only paid after production has wrapped. This forces producers to take out loans to finance the interim period, which is often 18 months or more, with interest costs on these loans consuming as much as 5% or 10% of a show's budget. This money should go on screen, not to the banks. Front-loading the CPTC through partial prepayment or accelerated reimbursement will remove this production inefficiency.
We are also asking that the government make a dedicated permanent investment of $50 million to support the production of Canadian children's programming through existing programs like the Canada Media Fund and Telefilm, as well as the Rocket Fund. The shows we watch as children stay with us forever. When kids see themselves reflected on screen, it builds a sense of belonging that lasts a lifetime.
Thank you.