OTTAWA – NDP Heritage critic Charlie Angus read from Cartt.ca today in the House of Commons while calling for hearings into the future of the Canadian Television Fund.
The emergency hearings will happen soon after a motion to launch them passed the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage today.
During Question Period this afternoon, Angus suggested that Heritage Minister Bev Oda was colluding with the cable industry to kill the fund after reading our Analysis piece on the CTF this morning which keyed off an interview with Shaw Communications senior vice-president Ken Stein, who described the meeting to Cartt.ca.
Oda met with Stein and senior executives from Rogers Communications, Bell Canada and Videotron on Tuesday to hear the concerns of the distributors, two of which (Shaw and Videotron) have suspended all payments to the fund.
Angus repeated Stein’s quote in our story that the Fund was, in Shaw’s estimation: "Dead. Done. Gone."
“First, we had the unprecedented spectacle of the cable barons publicly defying their license. Now, it’s time for the spectacle of a minister supporting the attack on the CTF. My question is, was the minister simply unable to stand up to this outrageous attack on the CTF or was she in for the fix from the get-go with her industry pals?" said Angus.
However, Oda has already announced the government’s own $200 million commitment to the CTF over the next two years.
The Timmins-James Bay MP added: “The minister, whose job it is to defend the CTF, has been an enemy of the whole notion of production obligations from the beginning. She was the dissenting voice on the CRTC against the creation cable production fund. She fought against making cable companies pay into this fund. And today she is the minister who will oversee killing this fund.”
The Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage will hold hearings as soon as possible, calling producers, broadcasters and BDUs in to testify.
“Bev Oda has been missing in action on every key file she has been entrusted with. Thousands of jobs in the television industry are on the line. The future viability of CBC programming has been directly targeted. If the minister refuses to do anything to defend Canadian cultural institutions, then the Heritage Committee will have to step up to the plate," added Angus.
Oda met with the CTF hierarchy today but made no further statement on the matter. The meeting let the CTF show the impact of the withholding of monthly financial contributions by Shaw Communications and Videotron on the operations of the CTF, and to respond to the concerns raised by the Broadcast Distribution Undertakings (BDUs), according to Douglas Barrett, chair of the CTF.
“We greatly appreciate the personal interest that Minister Oda has taken in this matter and the time she is dedicating to it,” said Barrett in a release. “We believe Minister Oda is committed to assuring the continuity of the Canadian production system and to doing what she can to find a solution to the current challenges.”
Canadian TV producers also added their voice today, saying the removal of funds by Shaw and Videotron "will have a devastating impact on the CTF, on Canadian television production, and on the independent production and creative sectors, resulting in the loss of thousands of jobs."
“We will not stand idly by and watch some cable companies unilaterally destroy an entire industry by dictating the terms by which they will or will not live up to their regulatory obligations,” said Guy Mayson, president and CEO, CFTPA. “Shaw and Vidéotron’s actions are unacceptable and irresponsible and, if allowed to continue, would set a dangerous precedent that would have long-term repercussions not only with respect to the future viability of the CTF and the Canadian production sector but also with respect to the integrity of the CRTC’s licensing and regulatory authority. That’s why we’ve asked the CRTC to be vigilant in ensuring all broadcast distribution undertakings respect their regulatory obligations.”
Stay tuned to Cartt.ca as this story continues to develop.
