I want to declare my background right off the bat so that people do not suggest I am in conflict, which I thought I heard from across the way.
As someone who comes from a broadcasting background, it is important to point out that there are many aspects of Bill C-32 that do not reflect the reality of broadcasting across the country today. Indeed, in Bill C-32 we see all kinds of impediments to doing what I think the government is hoping to do through this legislation. The government seems to want to protect the rights of copyright holders and to ensure that ultimately Canadian culture is strengthened. Unfortunately some aspects of Bill C-32 actually prevent that from happening and I want to touch on some of them.
One of the concerns I have as a broadcaster by trade, and I think I can speak with a little authority on this, is the whole aspect of time shifting. One of the concerns that broadcasters have raised over and over again is that the legislation does not permit broadcasters to delay the broadcast of a television or radio program and replay it at a later date without incurring additional expense and seeking the permission from the holders of the rights to do that.
It makes it extremely difficult for a small radio station or small broadcast outlet to seek the permission of the various rights' holders to do that. It escapes me why when there has been such a strong lobby from people in the broadcast industry to make what is just a common sense change that the government has failed utterly to do that.
I know some members on the other side are trying to make that happen and some amendments have been proposed. We are very happy that members on the other side are trying to do that. For nine years this legislation has been in the works. For nine years people have made the same point over and over again to successive governments. Apparently their pleas have fallen on deaf ears. It is a common sense change.
If that type of change is not made, it is going to hurt Canadian content. It is going to hurt the ability of broadcasters to broadcast local parades on the community cable channel. It is going to hurt the ability of broadcasters to do the sorts of things that have made them an integral part of the Canadian cultural scene. That is one of the major problems that many broadcasters have with this legislation.
Something else that concerns me very much is the whole idea of transfer of format. A new reality in the broadcast industry-it has been a reality for a few years now-is that many broadcasters have to transfer a recording from, for instance, a CD on to the electronic format, to the computer.
One of the things the government has resisted forever is allowing broadcasters the right to make that transfer without subjecting themselves to a legal challenge. In fact, broadcasters have raised that over and over again. It is quite possible that, by going ahead and transferring something from CD on to computer, the rights'
holders will then ask that they be paid for the privilege of having their music transferred on to a computer.
The computer then plays it over the air. Under that circumstance, broadcasters will have to pay the right's holder already. Potentially radio and television broadcasters are being charged a couple of times for something that really has only the effect of being played once on the air. In other words, the holder of the rights suffers no commercial loss. However, it imposes a tremendous burden on the broadcasters.
That is something that needs to be pointed out. Broadcasters have been very patient with the government on this point. They have raised it over and over ad nauseam. Somehow the government has failed to see the value in this approach. All the broadcasters are asking for is a common sense exemption.
In order to make the point more fully, it is important to mention the role that broadcasters play in the Canadian cultural scene. For a number of years, broadcasters have had regulations imposed on them whereby they have to play 30 per cent Canadian content. They play thousands and thousands, really millions, of hours worth of music every year to promote Canadian artists and composers. Under previous legislation, the composers received all kinds of money back from the broadcasters through the current copyright legislation.
The artists made millions of dollars by selling their records. There was a quid pro quo exchange between the broadcasters who were able to give the artists all kinds of what amounts to free promotion on the air and the radio stations were able to use the music to attract listeners and, ultimately, to sell advertising and make a profit.
It was a system that worked extremely well. For reasons that escape me, the government has decided to change something that is not broken, to fix a problem that did not need fixing and has caused a firestorm of controversy.
That has been reflected not only in opposition from parties like the Reform Party but even among Liberal ranks where a number of people have great concerns about what is being proposed. A number of members on the other side have propose amendments and have spoken out quite strongly against this legislation.
That should not be lost on us because it takes considerable courage to do that in the Liberal Party, knowing that the government may slap sanctions on those members. Some of them will not be rewarded when it comes time for the Prime Minister to hand out some of the goodies that he is able to hand out. We should note that they have done this. It points to how serious they feel an assault it is on their community radio stations and ultimately on the cultural sector.
For a number of years radio stations in Canada have been in a perilous position. Many of them lose money today. Most AM radio stations are in a position where they simply cannot make ends meet. The government is somehow insensitive to this fact and is slapping all kinds of new regulations on broadcasters of various sizes. The ultimate result will be that they will be bearing new costs.
We have made a point of saying over and over and over again that high taxes and regulation kill jobs in the Canadian economy. I do not think we want to kill the jobs created by Canadian radio stations that provide tremendous services to their local communities, reflect the values of their local communities, and completely bring together all disparate strands in the local community in one place so that people understand what is happening on a daily basis, in fact every minute of every day. This is something that happens through no other media form.
We should be sensitive to this point and ensure that bills like Bill C-32 do not end up killing a very important institution like Canadian radio broadcasting.