Senate showdown ahead? Minister rejects some Bill C-11 amendments
After taking weeks to consider the Senate's changes to the Liberals' contentious online streaming legislation known as Bill C-11, Canadian Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez confirmed he's rejecting several of the amendments made.
While the Liberals are poised to accept the majority of legislative adjustments made in the upper chamber during its longest-ever study of a piece of government legislation, they are turning down a few of the Senate's more consequential changes and suggesting further tweaks to others.
This means Bill C-11 may be heading for a legislative showdown.
The long-languishing legislation is aimed at substantively updating Canada's Broadcasting Act regime for the first time since 1991, to ensure social media and streaming giants like TikTok and Netflix are subjected to Canadian content requirements and regulations comparable to traditional broadcasters.
While many in the "CanCon" music, film and television industries are backing the proposal, Bill C-11 has been the subject of heavy scrutiny from industry stakeholders, content creators and opposition MPs who fear it will result in censoring what content gets seen online.
In a message sent to the Senate, Rodriguez outlined which of the 26 amendments to 12 clauses the Liberals will be allowing. The federal government's response was then debated by MPs in the House of Commons on Wednesday evening, with likely more debate ahead.
If the take-some-and-leave-some approach is accepted, Bill C-11 will pass and soon become law, allowing the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) to get to work on implementing the coinciding regulatory changes granting that body new powers.
But, should the Senate seek to stand its ground on certain changes, the amendments may become subject of procedural ping-pong between the two chambers.
"I want to thank the senators for all their work on this very important bill," Rodriguez told reporters on Wednesday. "This is a bill that spent the most time in the Senate in the history of Canada… There's been lots of debate."
"And we're accepting a vast majority of the Senate amendments but some that could create a loophole, we're not accepting," the minister said.
WHAT AMENDMENTS ARE BEING REJECTED?
Among the Senate changes being turned down—or "respectfully" disagreed with, per the official notice provided to Parliament—is the attempt from senators to impose age-verification methods on certain content, to prevent children from accessing material online that is "devoted to depicting, for a sexual purpose, explicit sexual activity."
Rodriguez said this proposal is being passed over because it "seeks to legislate matters in the broadcasting system that are beyond the policy intent of the bill."
This was also the reason given for turning down a Senate amendment seeking to change the way the CBC handles advertising content, an issue the minister said requires "further study… on how best to position our national public broadcaster to meet the needs and expectations of Canadians."
Another amendment hitting the cutting room floor was aimed at further instilling protections for user-generated content.
This change was brought forward by senators after numerous witnesses expressed concerns that the new Canadian content requirements would have knock-on effects for content posted on platforms such as YouTube by individual creators, something the Liberals continue to deny.
This change is being declined, Rodriguez said, because it would impact the government's ability to "publicly consult on, and issue, a policy direction to the CRTC to appropriately scope the regulation of social media services."
Other amendments are being rejected due to Liberal concerns that they would cause "interpretative issues," or could impact the CRTC's ability to impose conditions around the diversity of programming and what is considered Canadian content.
As for what changes the House is willing to accept, the Liberals are backing efforts from the Senate to ensure platforms are mindful of promoting and reflecting diversity, including Indigenous languages, and instilling protections around the new category of online broadcasts referred to in the bill as "undertakings."
WHAT'S BEING SAID ABOUT C-11 AS IT STANDS
Asked whether he's bracing for the federal government's response to the Senate changes to spark a stand-off, Government House Leader Mark Holland said no, because the Liberals’ approach has the backing of the Bloc Quebecois and the NDP, and because there's been productive dialogue with the Senate.
"We’re dedicated to passing this legislation, so I think you’ll see very broad support from the elected House on this legislation… And I’m very confident that the Senate will accept our verdict."
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh affirmed his party's support for Bill C-11 on Wednesday, suggesting the Conservatives are siding with tech giants who are trying to get out of paying their fair share.
"Web giants don't contribute to Canadian culture, don't pay into a fund to support local Canadian artists, musicians, movies, films, culture in general. And we think that's unfair… and we stand by our position that they should they should also be contributing their fair share," he told reporters on Parliament Hill.
The Official Opposition Conservatives remain adamantly opposed to Bill C-11. In anticipation that the legislation is near passage, Conservative MPs have been ramping up their social media campaigns imploring supporters to call their MPs and tell them to "kill Bill C-11."
During debate, Conservative MP and heritage critic Rachael Thomas claimed that the legislation would give the government control over what Canadians see online, which is a claim the bill's advocates have repeatedly rejected.
Before moving an amendment to the government's response, seeking to delete Rodriguez's proposal and replace it with wording that would see the legislation withdrawn entirely, she alleged that if Bill C-11 passed Canada would be comparable to "North Korea, China, and Russia."
"YouTube would be forced to give more of what the government wants us to see, rather than more of what Canadians wish to see," she said.
In presenting the amendments made by the Senate Transport and Communications Committee, chair and Conservative Sen. Leo Housakos said the changes made all improved Bill C-11 but "there remained many concerns."
He echoed this in his initial reaction to Rodriguez' rejections in a tweet on Wednesday, pointing to analysis by Michael Geist, a University of Ottawa law professor and the Canada Research Chair in internet and e-commerce law who said the Liberals’ approach "reveals its true intent: retain power to regulate user content."
"Bang on," Housakos said.
Responding to some of the Conservatives' comments on Bill C-11 during the debate, Liberal MP and Rodriguez's parliamentary secretary Chris Bittle said it was "truly shocking" to see the Conservatives rely on "talking points" from the tech companies that have been fighting the bill throughout its "long journey" in Parliament.
"These companies don't need lobbyists, Mr. Speaker, they have the Conservative Party," Bittle said.
STAKEHOLDERS MIXED ON AMENDMENTS ACCEPTED
Reacting to Rodriguez' mixed response to the Senate changes, advocacy group for Canadian content creators Digital First Canada called it a "slap in the face to the creators who spoke up and participated in this process, and to the senators who recognized these creators as the future of Canada’s digital economy."
In a statement, Digital First Canada director Scott Benzie called for MPs to push back and save the Senate amendment regarding user-generated content to protect digital creators' businesses.
"It's shocking that the Senate's sober second thought was dismissed, and that the government continues to act as though digital creators are not legitimate artists and entrepreneurs. But the voices of creators and their communities will not be ignored. We aren’t going anywhere – and this government and legacy media are just going to have to get used to it," he said.
Taking a different view, the Canadian Media Producers Association (CMPA) commended Rodriguez for supporting "key" amendments that they said "recognize the vital role independent producers play in Canada’s broadcasting system and ensure that they can significantly and equitably control and benefit from their own stories."
"It has been a long road, but the finish line for Bill C-11 is in sight," said CMPA president and CEO Reynolds Mastin in a statement. "We have long called for the government to level the playing field between foreign streaming services and domestic producers, creators and broadcasters."
The CMPA cautioned that there remains room for improvement in a portion of the bill that they say would create a "two-tier" system that would hold foreign streamers to a different standard and may result in fewer Canadian creators being used in their productions.
IN DEPTH
Budget 2024 prioritizes housing while taxing highest earners, deficit projected at $39.8B
In an effort to level the playing field for young people, in the 2024 federal budget, the government is targeting Canada's highest earners with new taxes in order to help offset billions in new spending to enhance the country's housing supply and social supports.
'One of the greatest': Former prime minister Brian Mulroney commemorated at state funeral
Prominent Canadians, political leaders, and family members remembered former prime minister and Progressive Conservative titan Brian Mulroney as an ambitious and compassionate nation-builder at his state funeral on Saturday.
'Democracy requires constant vigilance' Trudeau testifies at inquiry into foreign election interference in Canada
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau testified Wednesday before the national public inquiry into foreign interference in Canada's electoral processes, following a day of testimony from top cabinet ministers about allegations of meddling in the 2019 and 2021 federal elections. Recap all the prime minister had to say.
As Poilievre sides with Smith on trans restrictions, former Conservative candidate says he's 'playing with fire'
Siding with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith on her proposed restrictions on transgender youth, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre confirmed Wednesday that he is against trans and non-binary minors using puberty blockers.
Supports for passengers, farmers, artists: 7 bills from MPs and Senators to watch in 2024
When parliamentarians return to Ottawa in a few weeks to kick off the 2024 sitting, there are a few bills from MPs and senators that will be worth keeping an eye on, from a 'gutted' proposal to offer a carbon tax break to farmers, to an initiative aimed at improving Canada's DNA data bank.
Opinion
opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster
A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government’s three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party’s popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?
opinion Don Martin: The doctor Trudeau dumped has a prescription for better health care
Political columnist Don Martin sat down with former federal health minister Jane Philpott, who's on a crusade to help fix Canada's broken health care system, and who declined to take any shots at the prime minister who dumped her from caucus.
opinion Don Martin: Trudeau's seeking shelter from the housing storm he helped create
While Justin Trudeau's recent housing announcements are generally drawing praise from experts, political columnist Don Martin argues there shouldn’t be any standing ovations for a prime minister who helped caused the problem in the first place.
opinion Don Martin: Poilievre has the field to himself as he races across the country to big crowds
It came to pass on Thursday evening that the confidentially predictable failure of the Official Opposition non-confidence motion went down with 204 Liberal, BQ and NDP nays to 116 Conservative yeas. But forcing Canada into a federal election campaign was never the point.
opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike
When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Canada Disability Benefit needs to be safeguarded from clawbacks, MPs unanimously agree
The federal government needs to safeguard the incoming Canada Disability Benefit from clawbacks and do more to ensure it actually meets the stated aim of lifting people living with disabilities out of poverty, MPs from all parties agree.
Security guard shot, seriously injured outside of Drake's Toronto mansion
A security guard working at Drake’s Bridle Path mansion in Toronto was seriously injured in a shooting outside the residence early Tuesday morning, police said.
Testifying in hush money trial, adult film actor Stormy Daniels describes first meeting Trump
Stormy Daniels took the witness stand Tuesday at Donald Trump's hush money trial, describing for jurors a sexual encounter the porn actor says she had in 2006 that resulted in her being paid off to keep silent during the presidential election 10 years later.
King Charles too busy to see son Prince Harry during U.K. trip
Prince Harry will not be seeing his father King Charles during his current visit to Britain as the monarch will be too busy, Harry's spokesperson said on Tuesday.
opinion Tom Mulcair: Turfing Poilievre from House a clear sign of desperation by Trudeau Liberals
When Speaker Greg Fergus tossed out Pierre Poilievre from the House last week, "those of us who have experience as parliamentarians simply couldn't believe our eyes," writes former NDP leader Tom Mulcair in his column for CTVNews.ca
Apple unveils new iPad Pro with 'outrageously powerful' AI-powered chip
Apple is hoping its latest iPad lineup will breathe new life into its sluggish tablet market. In a pre-recorded live streamed event from its Cupertino, California headquarters, the company introduced the latest versions of its iPad Pro and iPad Air tablets, and an all-new Apple Pencil Pro.
Katy Perry's mom was fooled by AI images of the singer at the Met Gala
Katy Perry did not attend the Met Gala on Monday, but some of the singer’s fans – and even her mom – thought she did.
Your body needs these three forms of movement every week
Movement is movement, right? Not exactly. Here’s what your body is looking for in addition to your morning walk or yoga session, according to experts.
'It looked so legit': Ontario man pays $7,700 for luxury villa found on Booking.com, but the listing was fake
An Ontario man says he paid more than $7,700 for a luxury villa he found on a popular travel website -- but the listing was fake.
Local Spotlight
'It looked so legit': Ontario man pays $7,700 for luxury villa found on Booking.com, but the listing was fake
An Ontario man says he paid more than $7,700 for a luxury villa he found on a popular travel website -- but the listing was fake.
Investigating the tale of Winnipeg's long-running mystery bookstore
Whether passionate about Poirot or hungry for Holmes, Winnipeg mystery obsessives have had a local haunt for over 30 years in which to search out their latest page-turners.
'Love has no boundaries': Sask. couple in their 90s and 80s get married
Eighty-two-year-old Susan Neufeldt and 90-year-old Ulrich Richter are no spring chickens, but their love blossomed over the weekend with their wedding at Pine View Manor just outside of Rosthern.
Twin Alberta Ballet dancers retire after 15 years with company
Alberta Ballet's double-bill production of 'Der Wolf' and 'The Rite of Spring' marks not only its final show of the season, but the last production for twin sisters Alexandra and Jennifer Gibson.
Video shows gaggle of geese stopping traffic on Highway 1 near Vancouver
A mother goose and her goslings caused a bit of a traffic jam on a busy stretch of the Trans-Canada Highway near Vancouver Saturday.
B.C. mayor stripped of budget, barred from committees over Indigenous residential schools book
A British Columbia mayor has been censured by city council – stripping him of his travel and lobbying budgets and removing him from city committees – for allegedly distributing a book that questions the history of Indigenous residential schools in Canada.
Three Quebec men from same family father hundreds of children
Three men in Quebec from the same family have fathered more than 600 children.
Here's how one of Sask.'s largest power plants was knocked out for 73 days, and what it took to fix it
A group of SaskPower workers recently received special recognition at the legislature – for their efforts in repairing one of Saskatchewan's largest power plants after it was knocked offline for months following a serious flood last summer.
Quebec police officer anonymously donates kidney, changes schoolteacher's life
A police officer on Montreal's South Shore anonymously donated a kidney that wound up drastically changing the life of a schoolteacher living on dialysis.