Staff changes also made at Canadian Heritage
By Denis Carmel
OTTAWA – Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has officially announced his new(ish) Cabinet.
In a ceremony at Rideau Hall Tuesday, Trudeau appointed Pablo Rodriguez as Minister of Canadian Heritage. Rodriguez was government house leader until dissolution and had been Heritage Minister between 2018 and 2019. His predecessor, Stephen Guilbeault, is now the Minister of Environment and Climate Change.
Rodriguez is the third (or fourth if you count his previous passage) Heritage Minister to come from Montréal.
Trudeau also appointed Gudie Hutchings from Newfoundland and Labrador as Minister of Rural Economic Development. The Prime Minister’s news release indicates the minister will be supported by the Department of Innovation, Science and Economic Development (ISED). Previously, the minister in her position fell under Infrastructure Canada.
Finally, Trudeau reappointed François-Philippe Champagne as Minister of Innovation, Science, and Industry where he was appointed in January 2021, shuffled from the position of Minister of Foreign Affairs.
The cultural industry was quick to congratulate the new ministers and remind them of their high expectations:
“During the last federal election, the Liberal Party committed to many achievements for the cultural sector. First, it promised to introduce legislation to amend the Broadcasting Act, within the first 100 days of a new mandate, to ensure that the web giants contribute to the creation and promotion of Canadian audio-visual and musical works. This important overhaul, which has been overdue for more than a decade, would result in a monthly recovery of $70 million for artists, creators, professionals and businesses in these sectors,” the Coalition for the Diversity of Cultural Expressions said in a news release.
“FRIENDS looks forward to working with the new minister on these important issues,” said Raymonde Lavoie, chair of the board of directors of FRIENDS. This more specifically includes: “A stronger CBC/Radio-Canada, with fewer ads; Compelling streaming platforms to contribute to great Canadian stories; Legislation that ensures that Google and Facebook compensate Canadian news organizations for their content, including the CBC; Action to counter online harm.”
Maureen Parker executive director of the Writers Guild of Canada adds: “We need his strong presence in Parliament more than ever to get much-needed reforms to the Broadcasting Act legislated and enacted for Canadian creators. Canadian content production is at an all-time low and we need Minister Rodriguez and new legislation to lead the way.”
An ability to navigate the Parliamentary system will surely be an asset if he wants to pilot three difficult bills next session.
The Canadian Media Producers Association also chimed in, stating: “We are encouraged by today’s appointment and look forward to working closely with the Minister as he and the government follow through on campaign commitments to swiftly update the Broadcasting Act.”
Changes at Canadian Heritage
Cartt.ca learned there have also been staff changes put in place recently at the Canadian Heritage sector that had worked on Bill C-10.
The director general of the Broadcasting, Copyright and Creative Marketplace Branch, Owen Ripley who was leading the team answering MPs’ questions during the Heritage Study of the legislation has been promoted and is now assistant deputy minister of Cultural Affairs.
He is replaced, as director general, by Michel Sabbah, formerly director of Copyright and International Trade Policy Branch at Canadian Heritage (PCH).
The previous broadcasting modernization legislation, C-10, died on the order paper after the election was called. New legislation will have to be tabled, debated, and passed in the House of Commons and the Senate, where it died the last June. The Liberals indicated in their electoral platform a new bill would be tabled in the House within 100 days.
Cartt.ca is assuming it is 100 days from the moment the minister is designated, which is Oct. 26, so that leads us to the third of February. We do not expect much change in the Broadcasting Act modernization legislation, since the architect of the bill got a promotion.
