(OTTAWA) - Green Party Leader Elizabeth May (Saanich – Gulf Islands) unveiled the Green Party’s plan to support Canadian arts and culture.
“Canadian cultural organizations, like the CBC, Canada Council for the Arts, Radio-Canada, and the National Film Board, contribute over $80 billion to Canada’s economy and employ over a million Canadians,” said Ms. May. “However, our cultural institutions are more than just a statistic: they are the fabric that connects Canadians from coast-to-coast-to-coast.”
“Since taking office, Stephen Harper has cut over $200 million from the CBC’s total grant and operating budgets. Greens will reverse Stephen Harper’s cuts to our national broadcaster and restore our ability to showcase Canada’s cultural identity through local news and quality Canadian content.”
Greens will:
• Provide approximately $1.5 billion in stable funding to the CBC, Radio-Canada, the National Film Board, Canada Council for the Arts, and Telefilm Canada over 5 years;
• Extend income tax relief and incentives for Canadian artists, following Ireland’s and Berlin’s very successful approaches;
• Oppose the Trans-Pacific Partnership that will require Crown Corporations like the CBC to operate solely for profit;
• Revisit Stephen Harper’s amendments to the CRTC’s content regulations so Canadians can continue to enjoy quality Canadian programming;
• Create an expert arms length board to appoint board members of cultural institutions to end partisan political interference; and
• Implement a Guaranteed Livable Income to help lower-income artists succeed.
“Canada’s national public broadcaster is a fundamental part of who we are as Canadians,” said Jo-Ann Roberts, former host of CBC’s All Points West and Green Party Arts, Culture, and Heritage Critic (Victoria). “In the next minority parliament, Greens will work to restore the arms-length relationship between the federal government and our cultural institutions and revitalize our national broadcasters that Stephen Harper is trying to silence forever.”
“Canadian artists, musicians, dancers, and actors contribute to our national identity and the Canadian economy,” concluded Frances Litman, photographer, small business owner, author, and Green Party candidate (Esquimalt – Saanich – Sooke). “The Green Party has a clear plan to support the arts in Canada: we will bring in tax incentives and relief for Canadian artists and work with the CRTC to ensure that every Canadian is exposed to the wealth of art that is part of our heritage.”
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For additional information or to arrange an interview, contact:
Julian Morelli
Director of Communications
Green Party of Canada
cell: (613) 614 4916
office: (613) 562 4916 (224)
julian.morelli@greenparty.ca
Or
Kirsten Strom
Executive Assistant to Director of Communications
t: 613.562.4916 (200)
Toll Free 1.866.868.3447
kirsten.strom@greenparty.ca
