CBC still facing scrutiny in both chambers of Parliament

CBC/Radio-Canada continued to come under fire in Parliament Thursday. The Bloc Québécois continued its battle against integration in the House of Commons, while the Senate saw discussion about a lawsuit the Crown corporation filed against the Conservative party. During question period BQ Canadian Heritage critic Martin Champoux said his party has new allies in the battle against consolidation. He singled out CBC president and CEO Catherine Tait for specific scorn. “The Quebec National Assembly voted unanimously in favour of a motion calling on the public broadcaster to protect the autonomy of services in French and to work to consolidate those services. We need to ensure that the CBC and Radio-Canada remain separate, not bring them closer together,” he stated in French. “When people like Catherine Tait talk about bringing the two sectors closer together, they are talking about subjecting Radio-Canada to the CBC's vision. That does not work.” Taleeb Noormohamed, the parliamentary secretary to the Minister of Canadian Heritage, answered for the government. He vowed to protect the public broadcaster and then took some partisan shots. “The Conservatives, on the other hand, are planning to make cuts. Radio-Canada will be taking money away from the CBC,” he replied in English. “My question for the members of the Bloc Québécois is whether they will stand with us in supporting Radio-Canada and the CBC or whether they will align themselves with the Conservatives.” Champoux deflected the barb. “No one with a crumb of intelligence in the Canadian broadcasting sector thinks that the Bloc Québécois is siding with the Conservatives on this issue,” he said. “They need to change their tune. This is a no-go.” The BQ will always stand for a strong public broadcaster, he added. He then returned his aim to Tait. “Her merger plan, she says, is meant to align the sectors and find solutions together,” he told MPs. “Finding solutions together does not work. It means that CBC management is imposing its vision on Radio-Canada. Why is the minister refusing to protect Radio-Canada's independence from CBC's anglophone management?” Employment Minister and Minister of Official Languages Randy Boissonnault took it upon himself to reply. “This is critical. We have a public broadcaster here in Canada to sustain the French fact from coast to coast to coast. It is critical for francophone minority communities, like those in Edmonton, Peace River, and Corner Brook, Newfoundland and Labrador,” he stated in French. “French is an important part of our Canadian identity. The public broadcaster is there to keep the French fact alive, and it is able to communicate in French from coast to coast to coast.” In the Senate, the Conservatives wanted to know about a lawsuit the CBC filed against the party. The public broadcaster claimed copyright infringement when the Tories used CBC News clips in their advertising during the 2019 election. The case was dismissed in 2021. Conservative leader in the Senate Donald Plett said the corporation spent $400,000 on its futile attempt. He asked government representative in the Red Chamber Marc Gold who was accountable for that. “How do you justify wasting taxpayers’ dollars to sue a political party?,” he inquired. “As far as I know, no one was ever fired or held accountable for making the decision to do so. Why not? Was there any political involvement from the Trudeau government? If so, who was involved?” Gold said he was unfamiliar with the case and could not respond in detail. He did, however, take aim at the Tories’ continuing campaign against CBC. “With regard to the way in which you and your colleagues continue to frame the issue of the CBC, it is worth noting that despite your allegations that it is failing or it has failed, all broadcasters are going through tough times,” he asserted. “The decision to continue to support a public broadcaster is a decision that governments in Canada have taken for generations. This government continues to believe in the importance of a public broadcaster.” With his follow-up question, Plett raised the issue of performance bonuses for senior management of the Crown corporation. Gold cited what he said was an unlikely source to reject the premise. “Even the National Post — hardly an example of woke left-wing journalism — acknowledged that, in fact, CBC President Tait was correct when she reminded senators, who should have known better, that these were not bonuses but were part of the employment contracts that were outside of her control,” he riposted. – Reporting by Paul Park at ppark@thewirereport.ca

CBC still facing scrutiny in both chambers of Parliament

Telecom | May 10, 2024

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CBC still facing scrutiny in both chambers of Parliament

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