The controversial Bill C-10, an act to amend the Broadcasting Act, passed in Parliament early Tuesday morning despite concerns from members opposed to the hasty passing of the legislation.
The Liberal Party and Bloc Quebecois both voted in favour of the legislation, 196 to 112, and claims it will update Canada’s Broadcasting Act for the internet age and level the playing field for content creators.
“This bill has the unanimous support of the Quebec National Assembly and the vast majority of artists,” said Canadian Heritage Minister Steven Guilbeault. “In fact, several thousand artists and organizations representing hundreds of thousands of artists in Quebec, of course, but also across the country, signed a petition in support of Bill C-10.”
Acknowledging the bill would not come into force immediately, he said that every month that goes by deprives artists and arts organizations of $70 million.
“We heard the same thing from an impressive number of stakeholders from across Canada, who told us that now that a company like YouTube has become the biggest distributor of music in Canada, it has to be included in Bill C-10,” said Guilbeault. “We did that.”
He contends people’s rights are not threatened by the legislation, citing the testimony of “highly independent and competent officials” from the Department of Justice, who stood before the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage. “They carried out an analysis that demonstrated there are no issues with freedom of expression and Bill C-10,” said Guilbeault.
“In the bill, there are elements that provide for freedom of expression, freedom of creation and freedom of the press.” However, he indicated that the CRTC is not above Canadian law and “must comply” with Canadian law, including the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
Heather McPherson, NDP MP for Edmonton-Strathcona, called the minister “confused” on not understanding their position not to push Bill C-10 through Parliament. “We are very supportive of getting help to our artists, and we are supportive of Bill C-10,” she said.
“What the minister does not understand is the role Parliament plays in our parliamentary system, similar to the way the minister did not seem to really understand how broadcasting worked or, in fact, how his own bill worked before he tabled it.”
She was supportive of elements of the legislation. Still, She found how the minister managed this file and his attempts to shove it through Parliament without giving parliamentarians time to get this bill right as problematic.
“I have offered time and again to work through the summer, to do whatever we need to do to get this bill through, and the minister just keeps asking why we will not support the Liberal time allocation,” said McPherson. “How is that respecting Parliament?”
Tom Kmiec, Conservative MP for Calgary-Shepard, called the legislation “draconian” and urged the Senate to amend the bill and “make it less bad.”
“If amendments are not possible, the whole thing should just be abandoned,” he said. “If the Senate doesn't pass it and there is an election in September, then Bill C-10 doesn’t become law.”
Senator Dennis Dawson, who sponsored the bill, told the Globe and Mail that he believes the bill will not become law before the summer recess.
“The federal government has been talking about this legislation since November 2020,” said Kmiec. “In the consultations Minister Guilbeault has had with groups, they weren't presented with any laws or draft proposals.”
He told The Post Millennial that the federal government had passed the vast majority of their amendments this session without debate from opposing political parties in committee, except for the past two to three weeks.
“After the committee had been told to stop work by the House of Commons, the speaker had to intervene and rule those amendments to Bill C-10 out of order,” said Kmiec.
He contends the government is trying to become involved in the type of behaviour we expect from a big technology company. “This is not about levelling the playing field for content creators because the worst part of this legislation is the regulations that have yet to be written.
Kmiec cautioned that a dangerous precedent is set by granting bureaucracy the power to determine those regulations without debate. “When we delegate responsibilities to bureaucracy, we have to keep them at arm's length and within arm's reach,” he said.
“Right now, Parliament is tucked away in a box, wanting explanations on the federal government’s stance on policy, leaving a lot to be desired.
“We may disagree on a lot of things, but the need for accountability should never take a back seat in a democracy.”
Kmiec recommends voters contact their senators and urge them to get the full committee study with witnesses, including content creators and CRTC commissioners, to explain how they would apply the law. “It is important to understand their interpretation of the new power and its implications for free speech and content creation,” he said.
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