TORONTO — The ACTRA performers union today called on Canada’s Senate to quickly pass Bill C-10 now that the proposed legislation to amend the Broadcasting Act has been passed in the House of Commons.
MPs passed the bill by a vote of 196-112 late Monday night (actually in the wee hours of Tuesday morning), just managing to get it done before the House breaks for summer recess today.
“The Senate needs to expedite its consideration of Bill C-10 and pass this legislation as soon as possible,” said ACTRA’s new national president Eleanor Noble, in a press release. “The House of Commons’ vote to modernize Canada’s Broadcasting Act through the amendments outlined in Bill C-10 is a very positive first step. This is an historic opportunity to update and strengthen our ability to tell rich and diverse Canadian stories and establish new legal and policy tools for the 21st century.”
“Web giants, such as Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and Disney+, have become major broadcasters in Canada that benefit from our broadcasting system. Unlike traditional Canadian broadcasters, foreign web giants currently have no obligation to contribute financially to the Canada Media Fund or to create Canadian content using our world-class Canadian talent. The amendments proposed to the Broadcasting Act included in Bill C-10 would re-establish balance in the system and bring much-needed investments into the creation and production of original Canadian programming,” continues ACTRA’s press release.
“The changes made today will impact Canadian stories and storytellers for decades to come,” added Noble. “Our Canadian screen industry is a key driver of Canada’s creative economy, generating more than $9.3 billion in production activity and almost 250,000 jobs (according to CMPA’s Profile 2020 report). Without this necessary legislation, we will be leaving the fate of Canada’s cultural ecosystem to foreign web giants to decide.”
