Issue
Arts, Culture & Heritage
Federal arts and culture framework runs through the Department of Canadian Heritage, the Canada Council for the Arts, Telefilm Canada, the National Film Board, the CBC/Radio-Canada (under the Broadcasting Act), the Canadian Race Relations Foundation, and Library and Archives Canada. Active 2024-2025 files: the Online Streaming Act (Bill C-11 of 44-1, royal assent April 2023) brought streamers under the CRTC's Broadcasting Act framework; the Online News Act (Bill C-18 of 44-1, royal assent June 2023) produced the $100 million Google deal with the Canadian Journalism Collective and Meta's news block; the Cultural Renewal Plan in the 2023 federal budget added $30 million per year for the Canada Music Fund; Senate Bill S-208 (Declaration on the Essential Role of Artists and Creative Expression) and S-202 (Parliamentary Visual Artist Laureate, royal assent 2023). The federal Status of the Artist Act provides limited collective-bargaining rights for federally regulated artists.
Where parties stand
Compare side-by-side- Bloc QuébécoisBLOC
The Bloc Québécois defends Quebec's distinct cultural-industries jurisdiction and pushed for Bill C-13 (Official Languages Act reform, S.C. 2023, c. 15) French-content protections in federally regulated broadcasters and streamers. Supports increased federal funding for Radio-Canada specifically (separate from CBC), opposes any Federal weakening of the Online Streaming Act protections for French-language original-content production quotas, calls for full Quebec administrative control over Canadian Heritage funding flowing into Quebec including Telefilm Canada and Canada Council for the Arts grants, and defends the Caisse de dépôt's cultural-industries investment portfolio.
Source - Conservative Party of CanadaCONSERVATIVE
The federal Conservative Party under Pierre Poilievre voted against Bill C-11 (Online Streaming Act, S.C. 2023, c. 8) and Bill C-18 (Online News Act, S.C. 2023, c. 23) citing concerns about CRTC overreach. Has called for the elimination of CBC English-language operations (Pierre Poilievre's 2023 commitment) while preserving Radio-Canada French-language operations; the current CBC/Radio-Canada parliamentary appropriation is approximately $1.2 billion annually with English operations representing roughly 60 percent. Supports continued federal funding for the Canada Council for the Arts, the Telefilm Canada program, and the National Film Board, but at maintained rather than expanded levels.
Source The federal Green Party calls for restoring CBC/Radio-Canada funding to its 1980s per-capita level (currently approximately $33 per Canadian annually, compared with $115 per UK resident for the BBC), introducing a Universal Basic Income for Artists pilot (recommended by the 2021 Status of the Artist Act review), expanding the Canada Council for the Arts funding budget by 50 percent, full federal-provincial funding parity for francophone-minority and Indigenous-language arts programs, and amendments to the Copyright Act (R.S.C. 1985, c. C-42) for digital-creator royalty schemes.
Source- Liberal Party of CanadaLIBERAL
The federal Liberal Party under Mark Carney has committed to continued increases in CBC/Radio-Canada base parliamentary appropriation (currently approximately $1.2 billion annually), implementation of the Online Streaming Act (Bill C-11, S.C. 2023, c. 8) requiring streamers like Netflix and Disney+ to contribute to Canadian-content funds, expanded Canada Council for the Arts budget (announced increases in the 2024 federal budget), and ongoing federal support for the Canada Periodical Fund and Aid to Publishers programs supporting French-and-English newsroom employment under the federal-cultural-industries framework.
Source The federal NDP under Jagmeet Singh calls for increased CBC/Radio-Canada base funding to bring per-capita federal funding closer to the BBC benchmark (Canada at approximately $33 per resident annually versus UK at $115 for BBC), restoration of Canadian Heritage funding to print and digital newsrooms (the Local Journalism Initiative had $50 million over five years; NDP pushes for $300 million renewal), full implementation of the Online News Act (S.C. 2023, c. 23) including the federal-Google agreement worth $100 million annually to Canadian publishers (signed November 2023 after Meta's block of Canadian news on Facebook and Instagram August 1, 2023), and a National Indigenous Arts Strategy.
Source
Bills affecting this issue
- S-210Federal45-1In committee
An Act respecting Ukrainian Heritage Month
Senate version of Ukrainian Heritage Month designation.
- S-227Federal45-1In committee
An Act respecting Arab Heritage Month
Designates April as Arab Heritage Month.
- S-220Federal45-1In committee
An Act to designate the month of March as Hellenic Heritage Month
Designates March as Hellenic Heritage Month.
- S-221Federal45-1In committee
An Act to provide for the recognition of the Canada jay as the national bird of Canada
Recognizes the Canada jay as the national bird of Canada.
- C-209Federal45-1First reading
An Act to establish Albanian Heritage Month
Designates an Albanian Heritage Month.
- C-203Federal45-1First reading
An Act respecting Ukrainian Heritage Month
Designates September as Ukrainian Heritage Month, recognizing one of Canada's largest diasporas.
- S-276Federal44-1Second reading
An Act respecting Ukrainian Heritage Month
Ukrainian Heritage Month (Senate version, became 45-1 C-203).
- C-416Federal44-1First reading
An Act to designate the month of October as Hungarian Heritage Month
Designates October as Hungarian Heritage Month.
- S-202Federal44-1Royal assent
An Act to amend the Parliament of Canada Act (Parliamentary Visual Artist Laureate)
Parliament of Canada Act Parliamentary Visual Artist Laureate.
- S-259Federal44-1In committee
An Act to designate the month of March as Hellenic Heritage Month
Hellenic Heritage Month.
- C-232Federal44-1Third reading
An Act respecting Arab Heritage Month
Designates April as Arab Heritage Month.
- C-384Federal44-1First reading
An Act to establish Turkish Heritage Month
Establishes Turkish Heritage Month.
- S-1001Federal44-1Royal assent
An Act to amalgamate The Roman Catholic Episcopal Corporation of Ottawa and The Roman Catholic Episcopal Corporation for the Diocese of Alexandria-Cornwall, in Ontario, Canada
Roman Catholic Episcopal Corporation amalgamation private bill.
- C-374Federal44-1First reading
An Act to amend the Copyright Act (Crown copyright)
Limits Crown copyright on federal documents, freeing more government records into the public domain.
- C-369Federal44-1First reading
An Act respecting Christian Heritage Month
Establishes Christian Heritage Month.
- C-361Federal44-1First reading
An act to establish Albanian Heritage Month
Establishes Albanian Heritage Month.
- C-18Federal44-1Royal assent
An Act respecting online communications platforms that make news content available to persons in Canada
Online News Act. Requires platforms (Meta, Google) to compensate Canadian news publishers for displaying their content. Meta responded with the news block.
- C-348Federal44-1First reading
An Act to establish Somali Heritage Month
Establishes Somali Heritage Month.
- S-246Federal44-1Royal assent
An Act respecting Lebanese Heritage Month
Lebanese Heritage Month.
- C-11Federal44-1Royal assent
An Act to amend the Broadcasting Act and to make related and consequential amendments to other Acts
Online Streaming Act. Updates the Broadcasting Act to bring streaming platforms under CRTC authority.
- S-208Federal44-1First reading
An Act respecting the Declaration on the Essential Role of Artists and Creative Expression in Canada
Recognizes the Declaration on the Essential Role of Artists and Creative Expression in Canada.
- C-23Federal44-1Second reading
An Act respecting places, persons and events of national historic significance or national interest, archaeological resources and cultural and natural heritage
Historic Sites and Monuments modernization.
- C-268Federal44-1First reading
An Act to designate the month of November as Lebanese Heritage Month
Designates November as Lebanese Heritage Month.
- C-204Federal44-1First reading
An Act respecting Ukrainian Heritage Month
Ukrainian Heritage Month PMB.