QUESTION PERIOD — Transport and Communications
Business of the Committee
September 28, 2022
Honourable senators, on Wednesdays the Canadian Senators Group directs questions to committee chairs. Therefore, today my question is for my honourable colleague, the Chair of the Standing Senate Committee on Transport and Communications.
Senator Housakos, I understand that the pre-study the committee has been conducting on Bill C-11 has been an extensive process, and I would like to take this opportunity to thank you and our honourable colleagues on the committee for their continued dedication to tackling this topic.
I know that many Canadians have concerns with Bill C-11. I recently heard from members of 4-H Canada — an organization that is close to my heart, as many of you know — who shared concerns that the bill could set back many non-profit organizations, such as 4-H, that produce independent content on YouTube.
With that in mind, can you advise if your committee has heard from expert witnesses about concerns regarding the role of content creation and disallowing content on YouTube, as well as on other such platforms within the context of Bill C-11? Can you advise us if there are any potential impacts on non-profit organizations’ use of YouTube? Also, are there any other concerns that you believe the chamber should be made aware of with regard to this issue?
Thank you, Senator Black, for the question, and thank you for the notice you gave me of the question.
Yes, we have been discussing at length the inclusion of user-generated content in Bill C-11. Just yesterday, we heard directly from digital creators themselves, and we will hear from several more over the next few weeks. They have expressed their concerns that regulating user-generated content will put those digital creators at a possible huge disadvantage.
One of our witnesses testified yesterday that, as it stands right now, there is no gate keeping on a platform like YouTube. Anyone, including 4-H, as you have properly pointed out, can post their content, and they do not need government assistance to do so.
Mr. Justin Tomchuk testified that the internet is a level playing field for all Canadians who want to participate. As we continue our study of this bill, I’m concerned that, instead of removing barriers for marginalized voices and not-for-profit organizations like 4-H, we will be imposing barriers that are not currently there and creating an unequal playing field.
Senator Black, I want to thank you for your question and for raising this important point. I think our committee will agree that we should call 4-H to appear before our committee as we continue to call on independent digital and content providers. I also think it is imperative that our committee continues to drill down on this piece of legislation because — as we have gone through our pre-study and now our study — we are finding out there is a lot of light that needs to be shed in a lot of dark corners of this particular bill.
Also, given the fact that there was a lack of witnesses and scrutiny on the other side, where it was very politicized, it is imperative that we continue to do our due diligence. Thank you, senator.
