Discussion · Government Orders
Jean-Denis Garon Bloc Québécois
“I support the tax credit for journalism in the budget, but the rest of the plan for culture is not enough. The $600 million for artists is only a one-time payment. The government still has not paid it out, and it needs to bring back the digital tax and the broadcast fee to give culture steady funding. It is false to claim my party made no requests for culture.”
“Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague for her excellent question. I also noticed in the budget that there was nearly $400 million earmarked for the Sommet de la Francophonie, which is to be held here. Perhaps this will allow the Prime Minister to find more time to meet with the Premier of Quebec before the summit. Joking aside, there are certain things we have been calling for for a long time. The Canadian journalism labour tax credit is being increased by 35% and will be expanded to include digital media. We had been advocating for that change, and we believe it is long overdue, so we welcome it. Take the $600 million announced for artists. The same problem will arise next year because the government has still not reinstated the CRTC levy. The cultural sector does not need a one-time payment. It needs funding to stay afloat. The money still has not been paid out, by the way. The money promised has yet to be paid out. The government must reinstate the digital tax. The government must reinstate this levy. We need structural measures. As I have said before, even a bad movie can have two or three good scenes. That does not mean that, taken as a whole, this is enough to convince us that this government supports culture to the extent that we would like. For the past year, they have been accusing us of not submitting any budget requests for culture. That is not true. I am disappointed that the members opposite who are saying this cannot seem to read more than two pages, because we submitted a very comprehensive document. It saddens me, because I think that if they had read the entire document last year, the Canadian journalism labour tax credit might have been introduced a year earlier.”
Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague for her excellent question. I also noticed in the budget that there was nearly $400 million earmarked for the Sommet de la Francophonie, which is to be held here. Perhaps this will allow the Prime Minister to find more time to meet with the Premier of Quebec before the summit. Joking aside, there are certain things we have been calling for for a long time. The Canadian journalism labour tax credit is being increased by 35% and will be expanded to include digital media. We had been advocating for that change, and we believe it is long overdue, so we welcome it. Take the $600 million announced for artists. The same problem will arise next year because the government has still not reinstated the CRTC levy. The cultural sector does not need a one-time payment. It needs funding to stay afloat. The money still has not been paid out, by the way. The money promised has yet to be paid out. The government must reinstate the digital tax. The government must reinstate this levy. We need structural measures. As I have said before, even a bad movie can have two or three good scenes. That does not mean that, taken as a whole, this is enough to convince us that this government supports culture to the extent that we would like. For the past year, they have been accusing us of not submitting any budget requests for culture. That is not true. I am disappointed that the members opposite who are saying this cannot seem to read more than two pages, because we submitted a very comprehensive document. It saddens me, because I think that if they had read the entire document last year, the Canadian journalism labour tax credit might have been introduced a year earlier.