This view breaks the statement into its steps and names what each one does.
Mr. Speaker, Procedure · 18 wordsI rise today on behalf of families in Quebec who are sick and tired of being bled dry.Procedure Claims · 37 wordsOn May 21, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission, the CRTC, made a unilateral decision that is out of touch with reality.1 It announced that it is tripling the tax on streaming platforms from 5% to 15%.2 Positioning · 4 wordsThat is aggressive taxation.Positioning Procedure · 8 wordsLet us think about this for a second.Procedure Claims · 41 wordsThe initial 5% tax is still being challenged in court, 3and the CRTC has not yet collected a single penny of it, 4but that is not stopping the CRTC from trying to triple the tax before the court has even ruled. Positioning · 3 wordsThis is madness.Positioning Procedure · 4 wordsLet us be realistic.Procedure Reasoning · 52 wordsWho will end up footing the bill? I asked two of my Liberal colleagues about this earlier, and neither was able to answer me. The obvious answer is: Unearned certaintyconsumers. Web giants will not absorb the cost; our own consumers will have to shell out. Once again, the middle class will get hit. Claims · 24 wordsI am talking about families in Saint-Pacôme, La Pocatière and the 73 other municipalities in my riding whose bills will go up yet again.5 Reasoning · 64 wordsWho else will get hit? Seniors who keep track of every dollar so they can make it to the end of the month. Subscriptions to Netflix, Spotify, Disney+ and YouTube will cost quite a lot more. Given the current inflation, the groceries that cost an arm and a leg, and the housing crisis, a bit of family entertainment will end up becoming a luxury. Positioning · 12 wordsThis tax hike is yet another punitive measure by the Liberal government.Positioning Claims · 12 wordsIt is another tax that is driving up the cost of living. Procedure · 6 wordsLet us talk about the regions.Procedure Claims · 79 wordsIn many parts of Quebec, cultural offerings are rather scarce. Not everyone can have a large movie theatre, a theatre or a performance hall across the street. Online platforms are becoming a way for families in the regions to access new releases, both Canadian and foreign, and the same culture as everyone else at the same time. Taxing these services by 15% creates an additional geographic injustice for Canadians who live farther and farther away from major urban centres. Reasoning · 34 wordsIt is doubly punitive for the regions. There is a fundamental principle in our democracy, and our parliamentary work has been clear for decades and centuries: Parliament alone has the power to tax citizens.8 Claims · 15 wordsThe CRTC is a committee of civil servants appointed by people elected by the public. Positioning · 13 wordsBy what right can these bureaucrats decide overnight to tax Quebeckers and Canadians?Positioning Claims · 9 wordsThe government has the power to reject this decision, Reasoning · 5 wordsand it must do so. Positioning · 36 wordsIf it refuses to act, it is complicit. The CRTC is becoming our very own Internet czar. People sitting in offices decide what is good or bad for citizens. It is an insult to consumers’ intelligence.Positioning Claims · 11 wordsUltimately, it is consumers who decide what they want to consume. Reasoning · 12 wordsFreedom of choice is an important value in both Quebec and Canada. Claims · 27 wordsPeople are mature enough to decide for themselves what they want to listen to or support. Quebeckers are proud of their culture and have always shown it, Positioning · 4 wordsas have the Conservatives.Positioning Claims · 11 wordsWhen a local show is good, we watch it in droves. Anecdote · 17 wordsWhen a song is good, we listen to it on repeat—which I do regularly, by the way.Anecdote Positioning · 14 wordsWe do not need Ottawa to dictate what we should watch or listen to.Positioning Reasoning · 12 wordsThe Quebec public is sovereign when it comes to its cultural choices. Claims · 32 wordsFurthermore, by imposing a 15% tax, Canada is totally shooting itself in the foot. Our country is becoming one of the most expensive and least competitive countries in the world for investment. Reasoning · 28 wordsWhat message are we sending to investors? What message are we sending to all the communications and culture giants and non-giants that are interested in investing in Canada? Claims · 10 wordsWe are telling them to come here to be taxed. Reasoning · 20 wordsWho is going to pay at the end of the day? Once again, it is always the same people: consumers. Claims · 90 wordsThe message we are sending companies that might want to invest in Canada is that they should not come here because it is complicated and unpredictable and they are going to be taxed to the hilt. This is impeding investment in this country, of course. It is threatening paying jobs in technology and film. Heaven knows that in Quebec and especially Montreal, the top global hub, especially for video games, there are all kinds of organizations making films and that world-class productions are also being created in Quebec and Montreal. Reasoning · 26 wordsIn the long term, what message are we sending these people? Time and time again, the message is that the government is going to tax them. Claims · 20 wordsSome will say that the francophone minority in Quebec and across the country certainly needs the tax money to survive. Positioning · 21 wordsThat is a bad idea masquerading as a good one. That involves a misunderstanding of the reality of the francophone market.Positioning Reasoning · 74 wordsIf we impose such a heavy tax, what is going to happen? The major platforms will make economic choices. Producing in French is expensive, and the content is intended for a smaller market. If the government slams them again with a 15% tax, these multinationals may simply cut their francophone production budgets to cover their losses. Instead of helping francophone culture, this tax will discourage platforms from commissioning new series or films in French. Positioning · 9 wordsIt is our own culture that we are stunting.Positioning Claims · 81 wordsOur technicians, directors, actors, visual effect experts and post-production studios also work with these major platforms. They are already funding, in part, some productions. These people earn their living through huge contracts with them, which brings new money into our economy. By imposing a punitive 15% tax, the government is halting this economic momentum. If Canada becomes hostile and unpredictable, these companies will simply go film their series and produce their projects somewhere else. Quebec cultural workers will lose good-paying jobs. Reasoning · 17 wordsThe way to protect the francophone minority is not by putting our own people out of work. Claims · 17 wordsQuebec content producers, technicians and artists need solid partnerships, predictability and private investments to showcase our talent. Positioning · 30 wordsThe government, by waging war on the big platforms, is hurting our artists, pulling the rug out from under them, and denying them a unique opportunity to become known worldwide.Positioning Procedure · 13 wordsTo add to the absurdity, this decision comes at the worst possible time.Procedure Claims · 43 wordsThe U.S. administration and its ambassadors have clearly warned us that they see this as an unfair provocation and trade barrier targeting their companies.6 Canada is getting ready to renegotiate CUSMA, a trade agreement that supports thousands of Quebec families, workers and businesses.7 Reasoning · 14 wordsWhy is the government trying to pick a fight with our biggest economic partner? Procedure · 8 wordsI am going to digress for a moment.Procedure Claims · 90 wordsIn my riding, like everywhere else in Quebec and Canada, this agreement with the United States, the one that the Liberals are dragging their feet on renegotiating, offers Canada and our regions, especially Quebec, absolutely fundamental economic benefits. This holds true in all sectors, including the cultural sector, the industrial sector, the agricultural sector and the food sector. The U.S. is our biggest customer, partner and friend.9 Right now, we are putting up all kinds of barriers to stop these people from showing any interest in doing business with Canada. Positioning · 23 wordsWe have no idea why the government is picking fights with the United States like it is right now. It is sheer recklessness.Positioning Claims · 13 wordsInstead of making us competitive, it is damaging our ability to compete internationally. Positioning · 4 wordsIt is absolutely unbelievable.Positioning Claims · 20 wordsThere is still time to backtrack. The minister and the government have the power to block this ridiculous CRTC decision. The ask · 25 wordsThey need to heed the warnings of our trading partners. They need to stop thinking that every problem can be solved with a new tax. Claims · 60 wordsOnce again, the Liberals are telling us that they are giving more and more money, but they are putting that on credit. Then they turn around and collect more and more taxes to be able to pay for it.Partly on point In doing so, they are harming the Canadian cultural economy. Canadians are asking for a break, not for unnecessary tax hikes. Positioning · 45 wordsI do not want to hear that the Conservatives need to be better informed. The Conservatives have our culture and the protection of the French language in mind and at heart. We are proud of our artists. We have always been proud of our artists.Positioning Claims · 24 wordsThe government is saying that the Conservatives do not like artists and other such things, but that is not so. That is completely false. Reasoning · 20 wordsWe refuse to believe that the only way to support homegrown talent is to punish consumers and drive away investment. Positioning · 3 wordsThat is absurd.Positioning Reasoning · 50 wordsThat is not the way to build a strong, competitive economy. The more prosperous our economy gets, the easier it will be for our local businesses to fund, produce and disseminate homegrown works. Making people poorer and hurting economic growth is no way to help Quebec and Canadian culture flourish. The ask · 36 wordsThe Conservatives are staunchly opposed to this tax, and we demand that it be eliminated outright. We need to give taxpayers some breathing space, encourage investment and stop creating taxes that make life harder for people.
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