CCA BULL ETIN / BULLETIN DE LA CCA
UPDATE ON TOMORROW STAR TS TOD AY DEBATE
Ottawa , November 17, 2004 - Last evening, Minister of Canadian Heritage Liza Frulla appeared before the Committee of the Whole in the House of Commons to defend her Department's spending as part of the debate on the 2004-05 estimates. Parliamentary procedure dictates that when the government tables its budgetary estimates, the Leader of the Opposition – in this case, Stephen Harper of the Conservative Party of Canada – may select two sets of departments' estimates for scrutiny; Canadian Heritage was selected as one of the two “lucky” choices.
In a gruelling 4-hour, often heated, at times good-humoured debate, the Minister faced a series of direct questions from the Opposition parties and her own Liberal colleagues about the Department's finances and programs. CCA “took in all the action” from the gallery and brings you the following “highlights report” from the House, which is also informed by the Hansards released earlier today.
It is interesting, though not surprising, to note that the debate on both sides often veered away from the estimates themselves, and into a broader discussion of the current state of the Department and issues that affect Canada 's artists, cultural workers, and the public at large. The debate touched on current “hot cultural topics”, such as: foreign ownership regulations in the media, cable, and telecommunications industries; international negotiations on cultural diversity with UNESCO; Canadian content policies; the CRTC and, specifically, the recent CHOI FM, RAI, and FOX News decisions and ensuing controversies; copyright reform; Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, including its dramatic television production; and, of course, the renewal of the “Tomorrow Starts Today” ( TST ) funding program. It was also surprising that some of the most supportive statements about the arts and culture came from unusual sources!
A few notable excerpts from the debate are included at the bottom of this bulletin. The full transcripts can be found at:
http://www.parl.gc.ca/38/1/parlbus/chambus/house/debates/025_2004-11-16/HAN025-E.htm
Support from the Yukon
CCA has learned that Yukon 's Minister of Tourism and Culture, Elaine Taylor, put forth a notice of motion in the Yukon Legislature on Monday, November 15 th on the renewal of TST . Motion #361 reads as follows:
THAT this House urges the Government of Canada to renew the Tomorrow Starts Today Initiative and the Historic Places Initiative and to continue these programs for at least five years at the current or an increased level of investment.
Minister Taylor has also sent a letter to the Minister of Canadian Heritage outlining the Government of Yukon's support for the Department of Heritage's Tomorrow Starts Today program. This news comes on the heels of the unanimous declaration in support of renewing TST adopted at the recent meeting of the Provincial and Territorial Ministers of Culture held in Halifax , Nova Scotia just a few weeks ago (see CCA Bulletin 52/04).
PRE -BUDGET CONSULTATIONS 2004
For the first time in a few years, the Standing Committee on Finance will be hearing arts and cultural groups' presentations together. Three separate panels on “Culture” are scheduled for next Monday, November 22 nd and Tuesday, November 23 rd in Ottawa . Details are available at:
CCA's own 2004 pre-budget submission The Artist is at the Centre of Everything is available at www.ccarts.ca . Front and centre is CCA's #1 recommendation that the government renew the TST program, as well as six other critical recommendations, which include changes to Employment Insurance and tax regulations.
All these events are occurring within a very short period of time, adding to the momentum which is building in making the case for sustainable, permanent federal funding to the arts and culture sector across this country. Members of Parliament are listening, so take the time to make your opinion known!
*** Here is a taste of what was said in the House debate yesterday evening:
Tomorrow Starts Today
Bev Oda, MP for Durham , and culture critic for the Conservative Party:
“This side of the House has never indicated it does not support the program [TST]. In fact, what we want is to ensure that the maximum dollars are going to those it was intended to support.... May I then ask the minister for her assurance that no program will be cut and no funding agency will be cut, and that the levels of support will be guaranteed this year and into the next year?”
Hon. Liza Frulla, Minister of Canadian Heritage:
“… this is my firm intention – that our creators, our producers, our people in the film industry and our museums, in terms of collections, would not be affected…. It is the goal of Canadian Heritage, and I think it is also the goal of my colleagues, to have the Tomorrow Starts Today program renewed. However, such a renewal requires the agreement of all my colleagues and of the Minister of Finance who looks at the overall picture and decides if we can afford it or not ”
Canada Council
Hon. Liza Frulla:
“When we asked our major national museums to see whether they could cut 5%, we did not ask the Canada Council because we felt that, as part of its role, funding goes through the Canada Council directly to artists.”
Cultural Policy
Maka Kotto (MP for Saint-Lambert, and culture critic for the Bloc Québécois):
“Since last August, the Minister of Canadian Heritage has been talking about a possible Canadian cultural policy, which is an issue that we discussed recently…. What is this cultural policy the Minister… is talking about?”
Hon. Liza Frulla:
“The cultural policy… has three objectives. The first and most important one is to put the creator at the core of our concerns. The second one is to strengthen our Canadian identity. Finally, the third one is to promote accessibility…. when we have an integrated cultural policy and put creators at the core of our concerns, it is very easy for me to tell my colleague, the revenue minister that we made a government decision and that we have this cultural policy which provides, in the first of its three objectives, that creators are important.”
Status of the Artist
Charlie Angus (MP for Timmins-James Bay , NDP culture critic):
“[On] status of the artist … we must realize that our artists, despite their high education, make an average of $23,500, which comes down to 26% less than the average Canadian. There is no denying this. Those who say we need to increase and support measures aimed at supporting our artists are absolutely right. We need to keep on doing it together.”
Hon. Liza Frulla:
“I would then ask the Minister [of Revenue] how to improve the status of the artist, which is so important to us, knowing that labour laws come under the jurisdiction of the provinces.”
CBC
Hon. Liza Frulla:
“[We] spoke last week about the possibility of reviewing regional programming in order to bring back Radio-Canada and the CBC closer to the communities across Canada, since it is in their mandate to do so. Mr Rabinovitch is supposed to submit his strategic plan for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. We will use this plan as a framework to see what we can do and how much flexibility we have.”
Monte Solbert ( CPC MP for Medicine Hat ):
“We want to conserve the best of Canadian culture and find ways to do that…. I am concerned that we are not getting value for money when it comes to English language TV… I am talking about English language TV.”
Copyright
Hon. Liza Frulla:
“New distribution technologies have emerged, and it is even easier to copy or obtain works without paying for them. This is the case, for example, in the music field. And it is our artists who ultimately pay the price. We must give our artists the means to receive remuneration for their work. It is exactly for this purpose that the Department of Canadian Heritage is working with the Department of Industry to modernize the Copyright Act.”
Cultural Diversity/International Convention
Hon. Liza Frulla:
“I firmly believe that each country must be able to adopt its own cultural policies and to have the tools for protecting its own forms of expression. This is why I am committed to working for the adoption of the International Convention on the Protection of the Diversity of Cultural Content and Artistic Expression within the framework of UNESCO…. [Cultural diversity] is an engine for cultural, economic and social development. It is an asset that will enable Canada to become a leader in the 21 st century.”
For more information:
Kevin Desjardins
Communications and Public Relations Manager
(613) 238 3561 ext.11
Fax (613) 238 4849
57/04
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