Advocacy groups for Canadian film, TV and media production companies are applauding Canadian Heritage Minister Pascale St-Onge’s recently released set of proposed changes to modernize the mandate, funding and governance of CBC/Radio-Canada.
The proposed amendments range from prohibiting advertising during CBC/Radio-Canada’s news and public affairs programming and ending subscription fees for its digital services to establishing predictable and stable funding via a statutory appropriation based on an annual per capita formula.
In a statement released Saturday, the Quebec English-language Production Council (QEPC), speaking on behalf of the official language minority community (OLMC) film and TV production industry in Quebec, congratulated St-Onge on her “excellent CBC policy” released Feb. 20.
“The time is long overdue for the Minister of Canadian Heritage to have the courage to say what many people have said for many years, and needs to be said now more than ever in the face of threats to the existence of Canada’s public broadcaster,” said the statement, signed by Kirwan Cox, executive director of the QEPC.
“You are right. CBC needs to get out of the advertising business. CBC needs to have long term stable funding. CBC needs to double its budget to make up for the losses it has suffered by short-sighted Government cuts for decades. It needs to be as independent as possible from the government of the day,” Cox said.
“You are right. Canadians need to see ourselves and hear our stories as well as the stories of others. CBC needs to produce quality, competitive programming that English-Canadians, as well as French-Canadians, will choose to watch in the face of enormous and unrelenting foreign competition.”
The Association québécoise de la production médiatique (AQPM) in a statement Thursday said it considers the Heritage minister’s series of recommendations “to be a successful proposal to protect the broadcaster’s future from political uncertainty and to provide it with the financial predictability necessary to carry out its mission.”
“By recommending the adoption of a legislative framework providing for annual funding no longer based on parliamentary appropriations, but rather based on a per capita amount, the Minister reiterates that the national broadcaster must first and foremost serve each of the citizens who ensure its existence,” the statement continued.
Other proposed changes noted by the AQPM include the new requirement for CBC/Radio-Canada to consult the public on issues related to its priorities in order to better reflect the needs and languages of Canadian citizens, and a new governance model that would see the public broadcaster’s board of directors appoint its president and CEO. The Heritage minister had also said the amending legislation could emphasize the importance of the separation of editorial and programming decisions between the CBC and Radio-Canada.
“While the Minister’s vision establishes the necessary gap between politics and the national broadcaster, it succeeds in bringing it closer to the public it serves,” said Hélène Messier, president and CEO of the AQPM, in a statement. “The proposals found in the document The Future of CBC/Radio-Canada also offer independent production companies and creative teams that provide the majority of the content offered by the national broadcaster, a stability that is necessary in these times of great political, regulatory and financial uncertainty for the audiovisual industry. In addition, making the platforms free would allow for better coverage of Quebec content, as would the desire to respect the distinctions between linguistic markets.”
The AQPM said it hopes the minister’s recommendations “will not remain a dead letter and that they will be taken up by all candidates for the leadership of the Liberal Party of Canada and subsequently by all the leaders of the different parties during the next federal election with a view to their rapid implementation.”
The Friends of Canadian Media also released a statement Thursday applauding the Heritage minister’s plan for CBC/Radio-Canada.
“This is the most comprehensive and audacious plan to revitalize the CBC/Radio-Canada that we have seen in decades,” said Marla Boltman, executive director for Friends of Canadian Media. “We thank the Minister for doing the hard work of putting CBC/Radio-Canada on the path to providing Canadians with the services they need and want for generations to come.”
Friends of Canadian Media noted that the Heritage minister’s announcement comes on the heels of U.S. President Donald Trump’s “unprovoked economic attacks, which have galvanized Canadians to stand up for their sovereignty and their democracy,” the advocacy organization’s statement said.
“Now more than ever, Canadians are closing ranks around our cherished public institutions and expect our politicians to do the same,” Boltman said. “It’s time for our political leaders to send a message that they believe in CBC/Radio-Canada and the essential role it plays in Canadian life.”
Unsurprisingly, Conservative Party of Canada leader Pierre Poilievre was not so keen on Canadian Heritage Minister Pascale St-Onge’s proposals for the CBC/Radio-Canada.
“So, barely 60 days before an election, Liberals promise another billion dollars of your money to CBC to give the corporation extra incentive to campaign day and night to re-elect the Liberal government to a fourth term,” Poilievre commented on X. “A reminder to believe nothing you see or hear on CBC.”
Poilievre then directed his X followers to sign a petition to defund the CBC.
Screenshot of Heritage Minister Pascale St-Onge
