Canadian Heritage committee  Are you talking about the most recent measure, the Canada worker lockdown benefit?

Canadian Heritage committee  I believe the benefit was up to $300 per week, which of course was not enough. It's better than nothing, however. I'd like to make something clear: I'm not here to complain. All of these support measures helped artists in need. What's clear, though, is that they weren't enough. Artists had to wait to see if we were officially in lockdown, which was indeed the case in Quebec.

Canadian Heritage committee  Yes, of course.

Canadian Heritage committee  Yes, precisely.

Canadian Heritage committee  Yes, indeed. Artists are well protected in Quebec under the province's act on the status of artists, but I believe that the federal act could do better.

Canadian Heritage committee  Thank you.

Canadian Heritage committee  Absolutely. France, for example, introduced a program specifically for performing arts “intermittents,” as they are called there, and it has possibilities. In France, everyone knows that an actor can't be on stage 340 or 365 days a year. There are times when artists may not be working, but spending time on further training, creating, writing, and so on.

Canadian Heritage committee  Thank you for that excellent question, which I am unable to answer. Nevertheless, I could readily find the answer to the question about tax credits. Some of my friends are artistic directors of Francophone theatres. Lorraine Pintal, for example, comes to mind. I'm sure I could obtain information that would be useful to you.

Canadian Heritage committee  The measures that were introduced, namely the CERB, the CRB, the CWLB, and the $60 million in funding that has just been announced, were created specifically because there was no social safety net for artists. There was no financial support, and artists were in the dark. It should be noted in passing that every time a benefit program ended and was replaced by another, artists found themselves abandoned and in the dark for long periods during the transition.

Canadian Heritage committee  Mr. Champoux, I expect that numerous Francophone cultural institutions in Quebec are going to submit applications. As for us, we are going to go strictly through the Fondation. The UDA has decided not to submit specific applications on behalf of its members, but rather for the entire cultural sector.

Canadian Heritage committee  Fortunately for us, the situation is changing. Performance venues started opening up again last Monday. On February 28, arts and culture venues will operate at full capacity as they did before the pandemic. Although masks and vaccine passports will still be mandatory, we'll still be able to fill our venues.

Canadian Heritage committee  Exactly. If we have a talent exodus, that means we'll unfortunately be suffering the worst consequences of the pandemic over the next few years. One of the first things that should be done is to retain talent, the artistic and creative potential of our artists. We have to convince them to stay in the sector by giving them hope and predictability.

Canadian Heritage committee  Yes.

Canadian Heritage committee  The question is how this $60 million is going to be spent and to whom it is going to be paid. It's very difficult to assess that right now, because I don't know who is going to submit an application or how much will be distributed. The Fondation des artistes is an essential resource for the Union des artistes.

Canadian Heritage committee  Thank you, Madam Chair. My name is Sophie Prégent, and I have been president of the Union des Artistes, the UDA, since 2013. The UDA represents 13,000 artists: dancers, lyric singers, pop singers, actors and comedians to name only a few. We represent professional artists who work in French in Quebec and the rest of Canada, as well as all artists who work in languages other than English.