What they said. What they meant.

Plain-language translations from the House of Commons.

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Oral Questions

Canadian Identity and Culture

MPs debated Canadian identity and culture, mostly by arguing over funding levels for cultural programs and whether tech giants like Netflix should be forced to pay into them. The Liberals argued they were providing hundreds of millions in funding. The Bloc criticized that much of this would come from taxpayers rather than levies on foreign streaming services. No major conclusions were reached.

Official Hansard ↗

Christine Normandin

Bloc Québécois
“I want to score points by saying the Prime Minister is bad for Quebec culture. I don't like that he changed his mind on taxing tech companies. I'll keep talking about the past to make him look bad.”
Our translation 62% shorter

Christine Normandin

Bloc Québécois
“I want to attack the Liberals for spending more tax dollars on culture. Their expensive program charges everyone more, even if they don't use it. Lots of other places are making Netflix and other web companies pay directly instead. Quebec did that. I want the government to go after web giants too, instead of just asking taxpayers for more money.”
Our translation 31% shorter

Martin Champoux

Bloc Québécois
“ADISQ wants a long-term solution. They want Netflix and Amazon to pay more. The government didn't make them pay. Instead the government made taxpayers pay $600 million. I say this helps the big tech companies and is bad for Quebec culture. I want the Culture Minister to make them pay.”
Our translation 53% shorter