Good afternoon, Mr. Chair and members of the committee.
Thank you for having me today and for giving our union the opportunity to share the views of Quebec students on a very important issue, further to your review of the Copyright Act.
My name is Guillaume Lecorps, and I am the President of the Quebec Student Union. Established in 2016, our organization represents 80,000 students across the province of Quebec, from Rouyn-Noranda, Sherbrooke, and Gatineau to Montreal and Quebec City. Not only do we work with associations representing more than 200,000 of the province's university students through our committees, but we also work with a number of federal partners on issues of national importance that affect our members, including copyright.
The current review deals with numerous provisions, but my remarks will focus on a crucial concern to the student community: the principle of fair dealing for the purpose of education.
I'm going to use this opportunity today to discuss the important role of fair dealing from the student standpoint, the benefits of the fair dealing principle, and the various ways of managing copyright.
In a very important 2004 decision, the Supreme Court reiterated the need for the act to take into account two main pillars: the rights of copyright owners, so content creators, and the rights of users. Every single day, Quebec's students balance both of those elements in their dual role as creators and users of content. In fact, they were the ones who, through their campus associations, made it clear to us that they were interested in this statutory review.
Further to our consultations with those associations, Quebec's student community took a clear stand in favour of keeping the principle of fair dealing for the purpose of education as is. In particular, students felt that the principle had led to meaningful improvements in education quality, source availability, and the range of perspectives in universities.
Beyond the financial implications, which are nevertheless significant, Quebec students feel strongly about this issue because they want to make sure knowledge is as accessible as possible.
It is true that Canada's post-secondary students had access to a certain amount of information and knowledge prior to the introduction of the fair dealing provision for the purpose of education. It seems clear, however, that the provision has had a positive impact on both the quality and quantity of available sources in universities.
Keep in mind that this enhanced access to knowledge is the result of a tiny fraction of copyrighted works being distributed and that fair dealing should never be likened to property theft or piracy. The principle of fair dealing can be defined and controlled so as to allow for the fair compensation of copyright owners—compensation that is certainly important in an ever-changing knowledge-based economy.
The establishment of copyright coordination offices by post-secondary institutions such as Université Laval can be an effective way to ensure that the regime is implemented optimally. This approach is in no way intended to disregard the fair share of revenue copyright owners are entitled to for their content; rather, it is an effort to keep that revenue from hindering access to knowledge.
Furthermore, at a time when the Canadian government claims to want to increase the country's participation in the knowledge-based economy, it seems fitting to create a regime that encourages innovation and helps students reach their full learning potential.
The development of open education resources is another effective way of bringing copyright owners and content users together, while promoting content creation and fair distribution.
The Quebec Student Union's 80,000 members are well aware of the impact this legislation will have on them. That is also true for Quebec's university student population at large, which is keeping a very close eye on the issue.
They made it very clear to us that the federal government should prioritize fair dealing in order to make higher learning as accessible as possible, both quality-wise, in terms of education quality, and financially, as regards education affordability.
What's more, as both content creators and users, university students understand how important it is to ensure copyright owners are better compensated for the content they produce. Students, however, feel that the way to achieve sound public policy is to promote access to knowledge and fair compensation for copyright owners, without further straining a segment of the population that is already struggling financially, students.
The Quebec Student Union and its membership are of the view that the principle of fair dealing, as currently set out in the act, should be maintained further to the review being undertaken by the committee.
Thank you.
I would be happy to answer any questions you have.