Mr. Speaker, the cuts announced at Telefilm threaten successful festivals like the international film festival in Abitibi-Témiscamingue and the Carrousel festival in Rimouski, which will lose their subsidies entirely.
These festivals, however, have proven their success, often on shoestring budgets, with the quality of their events and their popularity with the public. They are local initiatives that are the pride of their region and of all of Quebec.
Telefilm's director, François Macerola, revealed his true colours with the dispassionate comment that the cuts had to be made somewhere. Clearly, the aim is to cut in the regions and concentrate everything in the major centres to benefit the money-making cultural events and industries. That is what it is all about. Quebecers cannot imagine their future as a people without the support and vitality of all the regions in Quebec.
This is another example of Quebec solidarity that the federal government fails to grasp. We wonder whether the directors should not attend one of the Minister of Canadian Heritage's $2,000 a plate dinners to ensure the survival of the regional festivals. When is the minister's next dinner?