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Decentralized Democracy

Member of Parliament

Anju Dhillon

  • Member of Parliament
  • Liberal
  • Dorval—Lachine—LaSalle
  • Quebec
  • Voting Attendance: 68%
  • Expenses Last Quarter: $103,608.23

  • Government Page
Context: House Hansard - 12 - Dec/7/21
Ms. Anju Dhillon (Dorval—Lachine—LaSalle, Lib.)
  • Dec/7/21 9:33:13 p.m.
  • Watch
Madam Chair, I would first like to acknowledge that we are on the traditional unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishinabe people. I rise in the House to talk about what Canadian Heritage has been doing to support the culture, heritage and sport sectors since the beginning of the COVID‑19 pandemic. The culture, heritage and sport sectors are crucial to Canada's social and economic vitality, contributing about $63 billion to our economy as well as more than 772,000 jobs prior to the pandemic. In fact, many artists and creators in Canada have gone above and beyond over the last two years finding new and innovative ways to deliver quality entertainment, enriching cultural experiences and meaningful connections that have helped us all to cope with the isolation and stress of life in a pandemic. They have done all this despite the fact that when the full force of the COVID-19 pandemic hit Canada in March 2020, the culture, heritage and sport sectors took many of the first and hardest blows. Concerts, festivals and sporting events were cancelled. Theatres, museums and cultural spaces were closed. Restrictions on public gatherings made events and celebrations of heritage and culture impossible. Production shut down for many creative works. Financing, distribution and dissemination became much more difficult. The damage caused to these sectors due to the pandemic has been significant. Between the first and second quarters of 2020, culture sector jobs fell from 656,956 to 530,801, with a fall in sectoral GDP from $14.04 billion to $11.9 billion. As of quarter four of 2020, the jobs total and the sectoral GDP figures had still not fully recovered, tallying 596,281 and $13.3 billion respectively, down 9% and 5% against quarter one 2020 figures. From the beginning of the crisis, the government knew it had to provide assistance immediately. In April 2020, the Prime Minister announced a $500‑million investment in the emergency support fund for cultural, heritage and sport organizations to counter the devastating effects of COVID-19. Despite the difficult circumstances that made everyone's work harder, the Canadian Heritage team worked diligently to maintain normal operations, streamline procedures and expedite payments through its existing funding programs, in addition to deploying much-needed support through the emergency fund as quickly as possible. According to a survey of emergency fund recipients, Canadian Heritage met its objectives. It helped companies stay in business and maintain jobs. Seventy-seven per cent of respondents indicated that the fund helped them a great deal or moderately to stay in business. The vast majority of respondents, 95%, expressed satisfaction with the speed with which they received funds. Implementing the emergency support fund in such a tight time frame was a massive undertaking that relied heavily on the collaboration and commitment of all organizations across the heritage portfolio, thousands of partner organizations and tens of thousands of stakeholders. If the COVID-19 pandemic has taught us anything, it is that we are at our best and our strongest when we all work together. Only by continuing to work together can all sectors move towards a full recovery and a more prosperous future. Since the beginning of the pandemic, Canadian Heritage has maintained a close relationship with the cultural, heritage and sport sectors in order to respond to their needs and understand their most pressing concerns. Additional support measures were initiated, including a $50-million short-term compensation fund administered by Telefilm Canada to help our film and audiovisual industries resume production activities, and more than $181 million for the support for workers in live arts and music sectors fund as was announced in the 2020 fall economic statement. In the fall of 2020, the department organized a series of town hall and round table meetings where roughly 4,000 participants shared their ideas about how the government could work with them and better support them. For 2020-21, the government also waived CRTC licence fees for all broadcasters to provide financial relief in response to the impact of COVID-19 on advertising revenues. After such a long time, the recovery is finally in sight. Since the majority of Canadians are now adequately vaccinated, many want to safely resume their cultural and sporting activities. Nevertheless, we know full well that the culture, heritage and sport sectors were the first ones to be hit hard by the pandemic, and they will also be the last to fully recover. The road ahead may be bumpy. New variants are emerging, and the number of cases is fluctuating. The Canadian culture, heritage and sport sectors will still need us on the road to recovery. That is why budget 2021 included an unprecedented investment of $1.93 billion through the Department of Canadian Heritage and its portfolio organizations. These funds will be used to promote the recovery and growth of these sectors now and in the future. This commitment includes the $300-million recovery fund for arts, culture, heritage and sports sectors, which will help organizations still struggling with the pandemic, and help to build resilience and promote innovation. A $200-million reopening fund will also help Canada's festivals, cultural events, outdoor theatre performances, heritage celebrations, local museums and amateur sports events to restart and re-engage with their communities and return to welcoming visitors from all over Canada and the rest of the world. Some other examples of the many cultural initiatives named in budget 2021 are $66 million in emergency support to Canada's six national museums and to the National Battlefields Commission to address the ongoing financial pressures of COVID-19. An additional $15‑million investment in the Canada cultural spaces fund is provided for to help arts and heritage institutions upgrade their facilities to meet public health guidelines. Note also the extension of the short-term compensation fund and the increase in funding to $149 million to continue supporting audiovisual productions. By all accounts, we have a long way to go before we can celebrate the full recovery of Canada's culture, heritage and sport sectors and say that the COVID‑19 pandemic is definitely behind us, but we have many reasons to be happy. Thanks to the efforts and collaboration of Canadian Heritage and its portfolio organizations, partners and stakeholders, we are on the right path. This is why the government is continuing to work with these economically and socially important sectors to ensure that their future is inclusive and sustainable. Canada's cultural offerings are among the most vibrant and diverse in the world, and I am proud of our government's efforts to lift up these sectors during this critical period. We will continue to be there for them.
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