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Tatiana Auguste

Liberal 4:25 p.m.

“I think my riding's art scene is great. I want to look like I am helping Black creators. I want more taxpayer money for Quebec stage shows.”

Alexis Deschênes

Bloc Québécois 4:25 p.m.

“I don't care about your riding's art scene. I want to tax tech companies and spend more on Quebec culture. Will you help me tax them?”

Tatiana Auguste

Liberal 4:25 p.m.

“I want to look like I care about Quebec culture. I'm going to say we spent a lot of money on it.”

Karim Bardeesy

Liberal 4:25 p.m.

“I want to defend the streaming and media subsidies this government is giving to various groups, including some in my riding. We should keep spending taxpayers' money on the arts to support Canadian culture. And the Opposition party doesn't understand how today's arts industry works, or how trade works.”

Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, it is a pleasure to speak to this motion today because it gives us an opportunity to really celebrate the cultural productions, the musicians, the directors, the TV producers, the workers and the makeup artists, all the people who participate in this rich cultural economy that we have in Canada. I will also speak to what is happening in Taiaiako'n—Parkdale—High Park. The motion also gives me an opportunity to speak to some trends I have been seeing in the party opposite, over my time in this chamber of just over a year, when it comes to trade issues and to cultural issues. With respect to trade, there really are two kinds of things that we generally see. There is the misread of the trade situation, whereby the party opposite either wants to go back to some historic past that does not exist anymore, as in the encouragement to bring back the auto pact in its complete form in a way that is not resonant with the current state of negotiations, the current state of the auto sector, or wants to capitulate. In this case, I know the party opposite was opposed to the Online Streaming Act, but it is recommending that we simply give up the real gains that we have made through mechanisms like those in the Online Streaming Act and through all the kinds of things that we need to do to build ourselves and our sovereignty up in this moment of real challenge for Canada. I believe there is a misread of the trade situation, but there is also a misread of culture and the way culture is generated in Canada. Artists do not just emerge fully out of whole cloth, ready to take on the world without any support whatsoever. I noted that my colleague from York—Durham made mention of Lucy Maud Montgomery, and I appreciated my colleague from Hamilton's very spirited embrace of Lucy Maud Montgomery and her work, but it is also important to note that Lucy Maud Montgomery was writing at a very different time, when cultural communications travelled differently, when books travelled differently and when curricula were designed differently. We are now in an era of very rapid digital communications. We need to change with the times, and we need to have the cultural assets that we have built up and convert them for a new generation. I would just add regarding Anne of Green Gables, Lucy Maud Montgomery's work, that it has continued to prosper in Canada in part because of the mechanisms we use to support digital culture. There is both the 1985 CBC series of the novels and the later Anne with an E series, which ran for three seasons. I know my daughter and my family were very big fans of that. Those cultural products, which came out of a place of strong Canadian culture, were generated from the kinds of supports that have been embraced and furthered on this side of the House, whether it is support for the CBC or, indeed, supports through mechanisms like those, if not in that particular case, in the Online Streaming Act. Artists do not emerge out of whole cloth, ready to take on the world. Artists are nurtured by community, and taxpayer funds are important for that. Also, where we can, the benefit of a policy that has large American multinational companies play their role in supporting this production is very important. Indeed, the mechanisms that we have in place are working. I want to quote from the CEO of the Canadian Media Producers Association, Reynolds Mastin, on the release of its recent annual report on the state of media production in Canada. He said, “The Canadian production industry has established itself as a great partner for foreign production, and with the promised investments from the Online Streaming Act, we'll see a boost in Canadian content production, reversing the downward trend of recent years”. In the report, CMPA also referred to foreign production activity, a set of activities that we are being told by the Conservatives is at constant existential risk, as actually being up 9.8% in 2025. The value of film and production in Canada, from the CMPA report, was $10.2 billion, and the industry is responsible for 181,360 jobs. This is a sign of a growing sector, a sector that is already mature and a sector that has excellence. This is a sector that not only produces original content but also produces a whole set of workers and capacities that producers and investors, including American investors, want to participate in. I was recently at the launch of The Testaments. It is a new Hulu series that is being filmed based on the work of Margaret Atwood, a great Canadian cultural producer and a great Canadian author from Toronto. At that launch, the producers, both American and Canadian, lauded the capacity, expertise and talent that exists in Canada to put on this production, including the makeup artists, the costumers and the builders of the film production sets. I have to add Mrs. Huizenga thrift shop to that list, which is in Toronto's Junction area of Taiaiako'n—Parkdale—High Park, which was featured in The Testaments tv show. The story that the Conservatives are telling is representative of neither the current state of affairs nor the excitement that Canadians feel about the cultural productions that are being produced here. It is a misread to say that artists emerge whole cloth, ready to take on the world without any of the kinds of supports that we, on this side of the House, know are necessary. We know that different kinds of artists need support, for example, if they come from different identity groups or speak different languages. We know that Canadian companies need to grow and to have the opportunity to play on an equal playing field. We know that Canadian producers want to partner with American companies, but we also need that opportunity to have the resources come in to do that work. In this era of streaming, there is an increasingly complex dynamic between streamers and creators. There is a whole set of intermediaries who have now been displaced from our arts and culture sector, including the A and R people, many independent producers, local television stations and even video stores. The intermediaries, who help create those connections between artists and the very large producers, are starting to be displaced and are starting to adapt. Creators are having to take on more of the work themselves, of managing their careers and building up their resources, so they are playing the role of not only part-time artist but also part-time business person. Creators are ready and willing to do that work, but they do need some help and some support. The Online Streaming Act, like the Online News Act, is a very important part of the mechanism that gives the creators in Canada the opportunities to participate with revenues from very profitable companies that Canadians embrace and that Canadians subscribe to by the millions. This allegation that it is a tax on Canadians is purely fictional. It is an imaginary assertion. The payments that are being made under the Online Streaming Act and have been made under the Online News Act go to real benefits and to real creators who are creating products. Those subscriptions that I talk about have not changed. I want to talk about some of the beneficiaries of the complete set of funding mechanisms that we have in Canada in my riding of Taiaiako'n—Parkdale—High Park, including through vehicles such as Telefilm Canada; the Canada Media Fund; Canada Council for the Arts; CBC, which is constantly denigrated on the other side of the House; and yes, some of the revenues from the Online Streaming Act and the Online News Act. There are the creators like Kunsang Kyirong, who created 100 Sunset, which won the Discovery Award at the Toronto International Film Festival and was filmed in my riding. There are creators in west Toronto like Matt Johnson, the creator of Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie and, of course, the very beloved movie, BlackBerry. On the TV side, we have tons of workers and unions, like IATSE, which is supported by its international vice-president, John Lewis in my riding. I have heard from so many cultural workers in my riding about the real and essential need to support Canadian cultural producers through mechanisms like those in the Online Streaming Act. There are musicians like Charlotte Cornfield, who has launched her recent album to great acclaim, and musicians like Daniel Lanois, who has a studio in my riding. They are all part of an ecosystem where some are internationally renowned. Some came up through America, and some through Europe. Many came up through Canada. They all benefited from the connections and resources we have created through the CBC, through the revenues that we help them get attached to with things like the Online Streaming Act and through resources like Telefilm, the Media Fund and the Canada Council for the Arts. It is part of an entire ecosystem that supports creators. If we are really here to support creators, to say that creators are essential to telling Canadian stories and that those stories are essential to Canadian sovereignty, then we need to have a way of bringing them from where they are to where we know they can shine on the world stage. That is done through mechanisms like this. It is not done by denigrating the real work that comes out of funds like this. For that reason, I will be opposing the motion.

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Natilien Joseph

Liberal 4:35 p.m.

“Those Conservatives are hurting Quebec artists! Why are they choosing American companies over us?”

Karim Bardeesy

Liberal 4:35 p.m.

“That's a good question. Let's talk about how we can help Canadian creators and also make sure those big American companies are doing their part. We want more money for artists and we want Canadians to be able to access their work through services like Netflix and Spotify. Our policy is good for everyone.”

Alexis Deschênes

Bloc Québécois 4:40 p.m.

“I want to support our producers. The Liberals say they care about culture, but they're not doing enough. They didn't push for the digital services tax. The CRTC raised it because the Liberals didn't do their job. What does my colleague think about this?”

Karim Bardeesy

Liberal 4:40 p.m.

“I want you to think that my party cares about Quebec culture. We spent money on the CBC. We know Quebec culture is important. But I'm not going to answer your specific question about the digital services tax.”

Tony Baldinelli

Conservative 4:40 p.m.

“You say you want to support Canadian culture. But this big new tax will hurt the industry. It will make Canada less competitive. Companies might go film in the US instead. The tax will make it too expensive to film here and tell Canadian stories.”

Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, I have a question for my hon. colleague. Does he think that the tripling of this tax by the CRTC will not hurt the cultural industries and artists we seek to support? I worked for the provincial government back in 1996 when the Ontario government passed the Ontario film and television tax credit. Back then it was Mike Harris's government, and the industry thrived. It grew tremendously. We are putting that at risk, making the industry more uncompetitive, by tripling a tax on them, so companies will not reinvest in Canada. They will make the decision to invest in productions in the United States, not here in Canada, supporting Canadian industries, supporting Canadian artists and telling Canadian stories.

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Karim Bardeesy

Liberal 4:40 p.m.

“You're worrying too much. Governments in Ontario all agreed to give money to the industry. It worked out great. I think we're doing the right amount. I look forward to having the government give money to more companies.”

Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, I have had the opportunity to talk to my colleague about his involvement in that file, which actually resulted in a bipartisan consensus in Ontario, whereby both Progressive Conservatives and Liberals supported the policy of supporting production, not only by Canadian companies, but also by international companies. That policy has led to results, including the one that I quoted. I believe that we are getting the balance right here. We want to continue to attract foreign investment. I do appreciate the hon. member's work, particularly in his community with the great cultural productions coming out of that place, which then potentially lead to film, TV and musical productions. I am very much looking forward to working with him on this file.

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Branden Leslie

Conservative 4:40 p.m.

“I don't like the CRTC's new streaming rules. They're a tax that will make Netflix more expensive. The government shouldn't regulate what I watch. Let people choose what they want to see.”

Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, I will start by saying that there are many ways to describe the latest CRTC ruling on streaming services, but I will start with the obvious one: This is wild. However, it is not all that surprising. Conservatives warned that this would happen. We warned that the Online Streaming Act was never just about making Netflix and others pay their fair share. The real issue was always much bigger. The government handed the CRTC broad new authority over the Internet and then asked Canadians to trust that the regulator would not go too far, but here we are. The CRTC has decided that streaming services such as Netflix, Disney, Amazon and others must spend or contribute 15% of their Canadian broadcasting revenues towards Canadian programming. That includes the 5% payment already imposed in 2024, which several major streaming companies are still fighting in court. If the government believes , like the Conservatives do, that this ruling has perhaps gone too far, it does have options at its disposal. It can direct the CRTC to change course. It can bring forward legislation to narrow or repeal the powers that it gave the CRTC. It can stop pretending this is someone else's problem. However, what it cannot do is hand the CRTC a blank cheque over streaming and then deny responsibility when the bill is passed on to Canadians. Let us be clear about what is happening. The government is taking the old Canadian broadcast model built for cable boxes, rabbit ears, licences and cable packages and is trying to stretch it out over the entirety of the Internet. The CRTC says this is going to create far more money for Canadian content. On the surface, that sounds absolutely wonderful. Why would we not want more money flowing to Canadian content? No member of the House, including me, is against Canadian stories, artists, actors, writers, directors, musicians and all the people behind the scenes who make the industry work. We all support Canadian creators, but this is not the debate. The question is whether supporting Canadian creators requires another unnecessary and costly tax while Canadian consumers are paying more for their services. Make no mistake. As much as the government likes to claim it, this is not just free money becoming available. Streaming companies are not charities. When the government makes it more expensive to operate in Canada, there are only a few places the money can come from. It can come, which is most likely, from higher subscription services and prices. It can come from fewer services, less choice or reduced investment in Canada. The money will come from somewhere. That is the part that defenders of this scheme always seem to skip. They talk as if the government had discovered a new cultural oil well: Lower the bucket, haul up the cash and sprinkle it around, and everything is going to be fantastic. What they have really done is impose a new cost on platforms that Canadians already pay for and then pretend that the cost is never going to show up on anyone's bill any time in the future. This is the loony-tune type of rhetoric the government likes to project on taxpayers. Costs are never costs, and taxes are never taxes. It is always a framework, a contribution, a modernization or a flexible approach, but flexible for whom? It is flexible for the lobbyists who know how to work the system at the expense of citizens. It is flexible for the established players who know how to fill out the forms, meet the specific definitions, hire the right consultants and navigate the maze that is the CRTC. However, for a family watching the cost of its monthly subscriptions go up yet again, it is not that flexible at all. People are leaving and have left cable for a reason. They wanted choice. They wanted control over what they consume. They wanted a service that could bring a little bit of joy at the end of their busy days. The Internet is not cable with Wi-Fi. It is a completely different world. The old broadcasting system was built around scarcity. There were only so many frequencies, channels, licences and time slots available. That is why the old system was built around quotas, licences, mandatory contributions and rules about what had to be shown. The Internet functions entirely differently, as we all know. It is built around abundance: endless shelf space, choice and competition, with millions of creators reaching audiences directly without needing permission from a broadcaster or a regulator. A small creator in Winkler with a camera can reach an audience. A musician in Portage can create a song and put it online. A podcaster in Morden can speak directly to listeners anywhere in the world. They do not need to wait for a broadcaster to discover them. That is not a loophole in Canadian culture. That is Canadian culture in the modern world, and it does not stop at money. The CRTC is also getting involved in something called “discoverability”. Discoverability might sound harmless, but on the Internet, discoverability is everything. It is about what appears on someone's home page, what gets recommended to them, what shows up in their search, what gets suggested next, what becomes easy to find and what gets buried. When the government starts saying that certain content must be made more discoverable, the question becomes simple: Is something more discoverable because viewers asked for it, or is it more discoverable because the regulator nudged the platform into pushing it? This is no small question. On streaming platforms, the recommendation system is the store. It is the shelf. It is the front window. It is the clerk saying, “Hey, you may also like this.” When government starts directing how content should be presented, promoted, searched and surfaced, it is no longer just funding Canadian creators. It is getting involved in what Canadians are nudged to watch. That should make people uncomfortable, because that should not be the job of the government. The Liberal government has already pushed through enough censorship legislation and has advocated for more control in the lives of Canadians. Nobody wants the government to further interfere in what they watch at home alone or with their family. I believe that culture is strongest when people choose it freely. It is definitely not when the government puts its thumb on the scale and then congratulates itself for creating demand. The more government regulates online culture, the more it starts deciding what counts as Canadian culture in the first place. A show is treated as Canadian not simply because Canadians like it or because it is a Canadian story. It has to pass through a maze of ownership rules, spending rules, rights rules and points for approved jobs behind the scenes. The entire purpose of streaming was for people to watch what they wanted, when they wanted it, and definitely without the government's interfering in it. The government will say it is about fairness: Canadian broadcasters have had to contribute to the system for decades, so foreign streamers should contribute too. That is, frankly, the strongest argument. However, Netflix, Disney and Spotify did not break Canadian broadcasting. The Internet changed, as did its its viewers, its advertising and its technologies. People got used to choosing what they wanted instead of paying for a bundle of things they did not want to watch. There is also, of course, a serious trade issue with this. Companies such as Apple, Amazon and Spotify have already challenged the 5% ruling from the CRTC, and it is still before the courts. The United States has raised trade concerns regarding the decision. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has criticized the CRTC's move, arguing that the rules target American streaming services and interfere with platform operations. These are not some fringe organizations on the sidelines. This is the organized voice of major American businesses looking at the Canadian regulatory system and raising concerns. This lands, of course, at the worst possible time, because, as we know, we are heading into a CUSMA review. Our economy depends heavily on keeping access to the American market stable and predictable. At a time when our trade relationship with the United States is already uncertain, the CRTC has handed the American negotiators a fresh grievance to use. Why are we making Canada look more complicated, more expensive and more hostile to digital investment? The Liberal government should be trying to attract investment instead of giving reasons to scare it away. The defenders of this scheme will say it helps Canadian creators, which is partially true. Some established producers will benefit: the people who already know how to navigate the system and exactly where to line up. However, what about the independent Canadian creator building an audience on YouTube, Spotify, Patreon, TikTok or a podcast? What about the Canadian filmmaker who gets global backing but does not fit neatly into the CRTC's preferred category? What about the next generation of Canadian creators who do not want to wait at the gate? They want to build, they want to publish, they want to stream, they want to sell, they want to perform, and they want to compete. There is a much easier way to support Canadian creators: Make it easier to produce content here, attract more investment, keep our taxes competitive, remove barriers, and open markets. We need to let Canadian stories reach audiences in their living room, at home and around the world. We cannot build a cultural industry by giving government more power over the Internet. I strongly support Canadian content, and we should absolutely celebrate it, but Canadians are not children. They do not need the government hovering over the remote control. Canadian culture and Canadian wallets would be better served if government got out of the way.

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Hon. Kevin Lamoureux

Liberal 4:50 p.m.

“I want the Conservative Party to stop complaining about streaming fees. They're just like the US. They should support more taxes and government control like I do.”

Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, Canada is not the only G7 country that recognizes that streaming fees need to be there. Members of the Conservative Party have put on their tinfoil hats and have come up with the idea that there is a great conspiracy of government wanting to control what they watch and see, which is a bunch of garbage. What I have witnessed throughout today, morning and afternoon, is the Conservative Party of Canada, Canada's official opposition, taking the side of the citizens of the United States. One would think they are working for them, or at the very least for companies such as Netflix. My question is, why is the Conservative Party, Canada's official opposition, not looking at the best interests of Canadians?

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Branden Leslie

Conservative 4:50 p.m.

“I want the government to stop interfering with online speech and picking winners and losers. The government should let all Canadian content creators have the opportunity to succeed without navigating complex CRTC rules and funding.”

Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, my hon. colleague is usually here, but he must have stepped out, because he has not listened to the speech I just gave. My point is that the government should not be picking winners and losers. I have absolutely no faith when it comes to the Liberal Government's efforts to previously censor what we see and say online. In fact, I would love it if my local news creators could share any of their news stories on any Meta platform, but thanks to this government's terrible legislation, they are no longer able to do that. My point is this: Let all of us, Canadian content creators of all types, the up-and-comers, not just the established creators who know how to operate the maze of CRTC rules to get special funding, have the opportunity to succeed, share our stories loudly and proudly, not just in Canada but around the world.

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Yves Perron

Bloc Québécois 4:55 p.m.

“I want the government to tax online platforms and use the money to subsidize local media. The government shouldn't be afraid to stand up to the Americans on this.”

Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, surviving in the world of Canadian and Quebec productions requires existing in the first place. The problem we have right now is that these platforms have invaded, and they are getting much more visibility. We have been hearing all day that anyone can put a song on YouTube and promote it, but will not be able to live off it. It takes a structure. It takes a cultural ecosystem. We need that money to reinvest in our local media everywhere. I have a question for my colleague. All day long, we have been hearing that CUSMA was about to be negotiated and that this was no time to put a tax on the Americans, that we had to give in and not put anything in place to prevent that. My question is this. Is it not time to stand up for ourselves? Over the past year, the Liberal government has shown that giving in on everything has given us nothing. I am thinking of taxing web giants and waiving tariffs. We have gained nothing and have had new tariffs imposed to boot. Let us take responsibility. Let us put in place the taxes we need. Then we can sit down and negotiate with the Americans. What does my colleague think about that?

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Branden Leslie

Conservative 4:55 p.m.

“The CRTC can't just tax online platforms and expect them to absorb the cost. They'll pass it on to Canadian consumers. I want a fair system where all content creators can compete, not just big players with special deals.”

Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, I certainly agree with my Bloc colleague on how bad the Liberals have been on their trade negotiations with the United States for the master negotiator to have achieved absolutely nothing so far except giving up elements of Canadian sovereignty and wealth. However, the member raised the issue of the money that the CRTC says it is going to create. Of course, that is what a tax does, but I fail to understand why it is believed in the House, or why any rational person would believe, that this is free money and that all of a sudden these big companies are just going to voluntarily not pass those costs on but say, “You know what, we should help out Canadian content. We'll just do this out of the goodness of our heart because we're a charity.” They are not charities. They are private enterprises. As much as I want Canadians to compete on the big streaming services, I want to give every content creator across any platform who wants to educate or to offer entertainment around the world the same opportunity, and not just let the big players take advantage of a system that is so confusing for everybody who tries to deal with the CRTC.

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Scott Anderson

Conservative 4:55 p.m.

“I don't like government funded art. Great artists didn't need it. I want to needle the other party by joking that this proves Liberals hate Canadian culture.”

Branden Leslie

Conservative 4:55 p.m.

“I don't like the CRTC getting more power. I don't trust it. Now it's taxing people and it might hurt business. The government should be careful with its entertainment policies and protect affordability.”

Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, I think we should all be so proud. I heard the names of a few bands shouted out. However, this is not about not supporting Canadian artists. I think there is a role to play. This is about the CRTC's being handed a suite of powers by the Liberal government, saying that there is no chance, as a regulator, that it is going to overstep its boundaries, but then it went ahead and did that. The CRTC has imposed, at a terrible time, this new tax upon Canadians that is ultimately more likely going to drive away investment than create the opportunity for another Hallmark film to be made in Morden. This is about common-sense policy and making sure we are protecting the affordability of entertainment made by Canadians for Canadians.

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Bernard Généreux

Conservative 4:55 p.m.

“I talk a lot accusing the CRTC of aggressive taxation. I say the government is complicit and consumers will pay. I claim it will hurt Quebec and francophone productions. I say the U.S. doesn't like it either and the government shouldn't pick fights with them. I tell the government to stop the CRTC's decision. I say Conservatives care about culture and French language too.”

Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, I rise today on behalf of families in Quebec who are sick and tired of being bled dry. On May 21, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission, the CRTC, made a unilateral decision that is out of touch with reality. It announced that it is tripling the tax on streaming platforms from 5% to 15%. That is aggressive taxation. Let us think about this for a second. The initial 5% tax is still being challenged in court, and the CRTC has not yet collected a single penny of it, but that is not stopping the CRTC from trying to triple the tax before the court has even ruled. This is madness. Let us be realistic. Who 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: consumers. Web giants will not absorb the cost; our own consumers will have to shell out. Once again, the middle class will get hit. I am talking about families in Saint-Pacôme, La Pocatière and the 73 other municipalities in my riding whose bills will go up yet again. Who 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. This tax hike is yet another punitive measure by the Liberal government. It is another tax that is driving up the cost of living. Let us talk about the regions. In 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. It 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. The CRTC is a committee of civil servants appointed by people elected by the public. By what right can these bureaucrats decide overnight to tax Quebeckers and Canadians? The government has the power to reject this decision, and it must do so. If 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. Ultimately, it is consumers who decide what they want to consume. Freedom of choice is an important value in both Quebec and Canada. People 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, as have the Conservatives. When a local show is good, we watch it in droves. When a song is good, we listen to it on repeat—which I do regularly, by the way. We do not need Ottawa to dictate what we should watch or listen to. The Quebec public is sovereign when it comes to its cultural choices. Furthermore, 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. What 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? We are telling them to come here to be taxed. Who is going to pay at the end of the day? Once again, it is always the same people: consumers. The 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. In 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. Some will say that the francophone minority in Quebec and across the country certainly needs the tax money to survive. That is a bad idea masquerading as a good one. That involves a misunderstanding of the reality of the francophone market. If 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. It is our own culture that we are stunting. Our 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. The way to protect the francophone minority is not by putting our own people out of work. Quebec content producers, technicians and artists need solid partnerships, predictability and private investments to showcase our talent. The 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. To add to the absurdity, this decision comes at the worst possible time. The U.S. administration and its ambassadors have clearly warned us that they see this as an unfair provocation and trade barrier targeting their companies. Canada is getting ready to renegotiate CUSMA, a trade agreement that supports thousands of Quebec families, workers and businesses. Why is the government trying to pick a fight with our biggest economic partner? I am going to digress for a moment. In 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. Right now, we are putting up all kinds of barriers to stop these people from showing any interest in doing business with Canada. We have no idea why the government is picking fights with the United States like it is right now. It is sheer recklessness. Instead of making us competitive, it is damaging our ability to compete internationally. It is absolutely unbelievable. There is still time to backtrack. The minister and the government have the power to block this ridiculous CRTC decision. They need to heed the warnings of our trading partners. They need to stop thinking that every problem can be solved with a new tax. Once 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. In doing so, they are harming the Canadian cultural economy. Canadians are asking for a break, not for unnecessary tax hikes. I 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. The government is saying that the Conservatives do not like artists and other such things, but that is not so. That is completely false. We refuse to believe that the only way to support homegrown talent is to punish consumers and drive away investment. That is absurd. That 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 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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Dominique O'Rourke

Liberal 5:05 p.m.

“I want the government to have lots of power to boss businesses around. Canadians are scared of America. Conservatives are mean. Quebec is special. Let's talk about how Quebec needs more rules to boss people around.”

Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, there are often times in the House when we can find common ground. I think we can all agree on the fact that a sovereign Canada, a sovereign country, has the right to make decisions on matters within its borders. If someone wants to sell something in Canada, we have the right to make safety, environmental or tax regulations. It is also a fact that Canadians want us to be self-sufficient. We are in a tariff war, as others have mentioned, and we have the right to make decisions accordingly. I am shocked that the Conservatives are calling the Americans our friends when they are imposing unfair tariffs on us. We can, however, agree on the importance of Quebec and Canadian culture. My colleague talked about a geographic injustice, but there is also the matter of the American and anglophone culture flooding in. Would my colleague not agree—

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Bernard Généreux

Conservative 5:10 p.m.

“The Liberals keep adding taxes and making everything cost more. Now they want to add tax on Netflix too. It never ends.”

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