Declaration on the Essential Role of Artists and Creative Expression in Canada Bill
Ninth Report of Social Affairs, Science and Technology Committee--Debate Adjourned
September 22, 2022
Moved the adoption of the report.
She said: Honourable senators, Bill S-208 was referred to the Standing Senate Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology for second reading on April 7, 2022. It proposes a declaration on the essential role of artists and creative expression in Canada, which would be implemented through an action plan under the direction of the Minister of Canadian Heritage.
Over the course of two meetings, the committee heard from the sponsor of Bill S-208, our colleague the Honourable Senator Bovey, in addition to stakeholders from Canada’s arts and cultural communities.
On behalf of the committee, I would like to thank those witnesses for sharing their time and stories with us.
The committee is recommending four changes through two amendments to Bill S-208 that reflect the testimony and discussions that we heard. Three changes were made to reflect the role of Canada’s two official languages in arts and culture. A new paragraph was inserted into the preamble to acknowledge that English-speaking and French-speaking artists are integral parts of the two official-language communities of Canada and should therefore have equal opportunities to pursue their artistic endeavours in order to enhance the vitality and development of English and French linguistic minority communities.
In proposed subclause 4(2)(d.1), the Minister of Official Languages was added as a mandatory party to consultations that will be undertaken by the Minister of Canadian Heritage to implement the declaration. Subclause 4(3) defined certain measures that the Minister of Canadian Heritage must consider while developing the action plan. In particular, paragraph 4(3)(g) mandates that the Minister of Canadian Heritage must “encourage greater investment in all areas related to artists, the arts and creative expression in Canada.”
In keeping with the previous amendments, an additional proposed subparagraph 4(3)(g.1) specifies that French-speaking artists, and organizations representing those artists, also be given specific consideration.
Finally, the committee is recommending an additional subparagraph, 4(3)(g.2), which specifies that artists who represent the ethnic and racial diversity, and all other diversities of Canada, and organizations that work on their behalf, also receive specific consideration for greater investments.
In addition, the committee appended three observations to the report. The first observation is that some committee members had questions that they hoped to have been answered by the Department of Canadian Heritage itself. Although invited, the committee did not hear from the department on Bill S-208, and it therefore did not have the opportunity to understand the potential impact of this legislation on department policies and programs. They were given every opportunity to appear.
Second, witnesses discussed the lack of a national cultural policy framework in Canada, despite historical attempts to develop such a policy. The committee recognized this gap and therefore included an observation stating the need for the Government of Canada to develop a national cultural policy framework in consideration with the provinces and territories, and with all art groups.
Finally, the committee heard from various witnesses that the current arts and culture funding regime is not always equitable. In particular, concerns were raised about Indigenous, racialized, disabled, senior and LGBTQ2+ artists and organizations representing them, as well as new and emerging artists. The committee acknowledges those challenges and urges the Government of Canada to ensure equitable funding for emerging artists and organizations, and established artists and organizations.
Finally, colleagues, I wish to thank Senator Bovey for her incredible leadership in bringing us to where we are now. Congratulations, Senator Bovey. Thank you.
Esteemed colleagues, I rise today at report stage of Bill S-208, An Act respecting the Declaration on the Essential Role of Artists and Creative Expression in Canada. I’d like to begin by thanking and congratulating the Social Affairs, Science and Technology Committee for studying this bill effectively and diligently. I’d also like to acknowledge the passion and courage of Senator Bovey, as well as the colossal work she did to make a case for the importance of the role of artists in Canadian society.
I’ll be brief in my intervention that essentially seeks to reinforce an observation that the committee made in its report, as the chair noted, which reads as follows:
Your committee heard of the need for the Government of Canada to develop a national cultural policy framework in consultation with the provinces and territories, and with all arts groups.
It is my understanding that this observation would stem from the testimony of Mr. Simon Brault, Director and CEO of the Canada Council for the Arts, when he appeared before the committee on June 15. The Canada Council for the Arts is a federal Crown corporation whose mandate is to foster and promote the study and enjoyment of the arts and the production of artworks. It is the primary granting agency for artists and arts organizations across Canada and operates at arm’s length from the government of the day.
The Canada Council for the Arts’ unique status gives this organization a very pragmatic view on the position of arts and culture in Canada. The council is, in fact, identified in the bill as one of the entities that the Minister of Canadian Heritage must consult before developing his action plan to implement the declaration provided in the bill’s schedule.
In his testimony before the committee, Mr. Brault visibly applauded the relevance and generosity of the bill’s intentions; however, he expressed concern about the feasibility of the action plan that is to implement the principles of the declaration under the responsibility of the Minister of Canadian Heritage.
Mr. Brault reminded the committee that the Minister of Canadian Heritage doesn’t have sole jurisdiction over culture. Within federal jurisdiction alone, culture involves many departments, plus federal institutions that operate at arm’s length from the government, that are tasked with supporting various sectors, such as film, television, the arts, architecture and literature. In addition to including all these stakeholders at the federal level, a realistic cultural development plan must also take into consideration the powers of the provinces and territories and reflect the diverse perspectives and realities of communities within Canada, including Indigenous peoples, official language minority communities and diversity communities.
All those factors led Mr. Brault to conclude that, if Canada wants to develop:
. . . a plan, making sure that artists are central to the development of the cultural sector in Canada, that means a lot of coordination, a lot of consultation and a lot of negotiations within the federal government but also from the federal government with all of the different provinces, territories and municipalities.
This unlikely observation highlights the complexity of our cultural ecosystem, and I can only reinforce it. On a cultural level, Canada is a complex country. Our country’s artistic ecosystem relies on a multitude of players operating in different jurisdictions. That really must be considered if we want an effective national cultural policy that considers the different cultural realities of our country. We also must not underestimate the challenges that come with it.
I commend the committee for the amendments it made to strengthen the place and importance of artists from official language minority communities in the preamble and the consultations. It would have been very enlightening to get the Minister of Canadian Heritage’s perspective on this bill. However, even though he was invited to appear, as the chair said, unfortunately, the Social Affairs, Science and Technology Committee did not have an opportunity to hear his testimony, which is too bad.
A well-known African proverb states:
The best way to rebuild the economy in a meaningful way is through culture.
I absolutely agree with that statement, which emphasizes the importance of ensuring that Canada has a realistic cultural policy framework and an effective action plan that takes into account all of the cultural stakeholders and that will enable Canadian artists from all backgrounds to participate fully in our country’s development.
Once again, I thank the Social Affairs, Science and Technology Committee, and Senator Bovey in particular, for their work and commitment to Canada’s artists and cultural community. Thank you, meegwetch.
