Mr. Speaker, I am very happy that the minister suddenly appeared after our remarks.
Many requests from the cultural sector went unanswered in this budget.
I would like the minister to tell me why, for example, there is no $50 million increase for the Canada Feature Film Fund, and no $300 million increase in the Canada Council for the Arts budget. What about creating the $10 million documentary feature film fund that the cultural community is calling for? What about reinstating full funding for the museums assistance program, or reinstating the Canada Council for the Arts grants for the theatre touring and special initiatives program? What about getting rid of the GST on books?
Clearly there are a number of subjects and sectors that the Minister of Canadian Heritage, Status of Women and Official Languages should have convinced the Minister of Finance to include in his budget. Not one of these measures is in the budget.
Could the Minister of Canadian Heritage tell us what she will do to resolve this issue? Because it is rather scary that the cultural sector, which is very important in Quebec and Canada, does not get more attention from this government.