GATINEAU – The five-year term of Michel Arpin, the vice-chair of broadcasting at the CRTC, ended Monday without a replacement being announced.
According to several sources, the seat may remain vacant for a while, until the federal government can find a candidate the Prime Minister’s Office likes.
As we’ve reported here and here, the rumour mill has whipsawed back and forth on what might be done, leading to lots of speculation on what may or may not be happening behind the scenes in Ottawa.
What we know is that the feds were adamant that Arpin not be extended, and that just about everyone who met the criteria (Francophone Quebecker with knowledge of the industry, for example) has been asked about their interest in the job and said no. And presumably, if the PMO wanted to appoint from within the CRTC’s commissioner or staffing ranks, it would have done so already.
We may have to wait until at least September 20 (when MPs are back at work for the House re-convening) before someone is named to the post because as it stands now, the position isn’t even being listed as an available opening on the Governor-In-Council appointments web page (which means they just aren’t actively looking any more right now or they do have someone waiting in the wings and just aren’t saying yet).
September 20 is also the opening day of the CRTC’s Calgary hearings, where the main one of course, is Shaw’s request to purchase CanWest. One would think the feds would want a vice-chair broadcasting in place for such an important proceeding.
– Greg O’Brien
