Speech by the Honourable Steven Guilbeault

Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage regarding the study on Facebook’s relationship with the Federal Government

January 29, 2021

Check Against Delivery

I would like to begin by acknowledging that we are gathered on the traditional territory of the Algonquin Anishinabeg People.

Mr. Chair, I am happy to be appearing before you again.

With me today is the Deputy Minister of Canadian Heritage, Hélène Laurendeau, as well as Jean-Stéphen Piché, Senior Assistant Deputy Minister.

The pandemic continues to weigh heavily on Canada’s heritage, arts, culture and sport communities. We are all committed to helping them get through the crisis and supporting them in their recovery.

So I want to thank the Committee for pursuing its important work despite the difficult circumstances.

Your study on “Challenges to the Arts, Culture, Heritage and Sport Sectors Caused by COVID-19” will be a valuable asset in these efforts. Canadian Heritage was pleased to participate.

I would also like to acknowledge the excellent work you have done on Bill C-5, which seeks to establish a National Day of Truth and Reconciliation as a statutory holiday.

When we met for the Main and Supplementary budget estimates review, I had just tabled Bill C-10, An Act to amend the Broadcasting Act and to make related and consequential amendments to other Acts.

It will be referred to your committee shortly, and we will welcome your input on this legislation as well. As I indicated before the holidays, I look forward to better understanding your perspectives and how the bill could be improved.

Level the playing field

Like many Canadians, our government is concerned about the current imbalance that favours the Web giants at the expense of Canadian businesses.

The economic and social stakes resulting from this situation are too important for us to stand idly by. That’s why the Speech from the Throne mentions that things must change to ensure a more equitable sharing of revenues with our creators and media.

Mr. Chair, our government is committed to regulating digital platforms and putting them to work for Canadians. One of the objectives of Bill C-10 is to require those platforms to invest in our creators, our music and our stories, this could lead to more than 800M$ of additional money being invested here in Canada.

This bill has been positively received by the community and stakeholders. I must share the credit for this success with the employees of Canadian Heritage as it would not have been possible without their supporting work. I would like to salute their expertise and professionalism.

As you know, it is up to elected officials to lead the development of public policy, and our government has given a clear direction on how we want to tackle social media platforms and web giants. And the Canadian Heritage team is providing excellent evidence based support in this regard.

Our government will also complement these efforts by “leveling the playing field” on the tax front, as we proposed in the Fall Economic Statement 2020. “Digital businesses” will now be required to collect and remit GST/HST. We will also “ensure that digital corporations pay their fair share of taxes in respect to their activities in Canada.”

I must also note that we are currently studying a made-in-Canada formula to ensure fair remuneration of news publishers by online platforms, similar to what you might have seen move ahead in certain other countries.

Canadians facing online harm

We have seen during the pandemic that digital platforms are more than ever at the heart of communications between Canadians, and are keeping us connected.

Unfortunately, some Internet users are also exploiting these platforms maliciously to spread hate, racism and child pornography. There is currently illegal content being uploaded and shared online, to the detriment of Canadians and our society. This is simply unacceptable.

We want digital platforms to take greater responsibility for this critical issue, in accordance with the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The Internet should be an inclusive place where everyone feels safe. My intention is to introduce legislation to foster a free and safe internet soon.

Here again, the expertise of Canadian Heritage is invaluable to us, in working tirelessly to examine research and studies, monitor the work of other countries to this effect, and provide evidence-based recommendations to tackle this very real problem we are facing.

We should be pleased to be able to count on a world-class public service that abides by a rigorous code of ethics.

As you may know, the Deputy Minister of Canadian Heritage is responsible for the Department’s human resources management, and she follows strict guidelines in this regard. She is accompanying me today to answer questions to that effect.

Thank you.