CHPC Committee Report

Supplementary Opinion

New Democratic Party

The NDP supports this report, but emphasizes the following points.  We also make several specific recommendations relating to governance.

Role of the CBC/Radio Canada

The NDP emphasizes the importance of a strong, well-funded national public broadcaster.  The CBC/Radio Canada is crucial to Canada and Canadians, and is a key Canadian institution at the centre of cultural, political, social and economic life in our country.  It must remain fully public.  It should be readily available and accessible to all Canadians, no matter where they live.  It must be funded at a level that recognizes this importance and the challenges it faces and the real costs of providing its services.

Stable Longterm Funding

The NDP strongly supports the provision of stable, longterm funding for the CBC/Radio Canada.  We strongly support the recommendation that this be part of a negotiated Memorandum of Understanding between CBC/Radio Canada and the Government of Canada.  Many of the specific recommendations in this report should be negotiated as part of that Memorandum of Understanding.  New Democrats believe that there is much value in the model of the BBC Charter and Agreement in this regard, and that a similar model would prove useful and workable here in Canada.

Mandate

The NDP emphasizes the importance of adding specific reference in the CBC/Radio Canada mandate to the role of new media, the importance of digital media, new platforms and emerging technologies.

New Democrats also believe that consideration should be given to add specific reference in the CBC/Radio Canada mandate to the preservation of the audio-visual heritage found in all aspects of its programming. 

Governance

The NDP believes that public confidence in CBC/Radio Canada is crucial.  We believe that confidence is high and that it must be maintained.  Any hint of political interference in its operations must be avoided.  We therefore make the following recommendations regarding the governance of the CBC.

The NDP strongly recommends that the Government of Canada develop skill and competence-related criteria for appointments to the CBC/Radio Canada Board of Directors.  These criteria should be developed in consultation with the CBC/Radio Canada Board of Directors, and they should among other matters, specifically require that appointments to the Board of Directors be non-partisan.  We also believe that appointments to the Board of Directors should better reflect the regions of Canada, majority and minority language communities, First Nations, men and women, and ethnic and other minority groups.  When criteria have been developed, they should be submitted to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage for consideration and approval with amendment if necessary.  Following the Standing Committee’s consideration they should be publicly released, including being published in the Canada Gazette.  The name and background of each nominee for the CBC/Radio Canada Board of Directors should be referred to the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage at least sixty days prior to their appointment accompanied by an explanation of how each nominee has met the established criteria.

The NDP also recommends that the CBC/Radio Canada Board of Directors, in consultation with the Government of Canada, be empowered to establish skill and competence-related criteria and a process for the appointment of the President/CEO of CBC/Radio Canada.  This process and these criteria should be submitted to the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage for consideration and approval with amendment if necessary.  New Democrats strongly recommend that the appointment of the President/CEO of CBC/Radio Canada be made by the CBC/Radio Canada Board of Directors, that the ongoing evaluation of the President/CEO rest with the Board of Directors, and that the ability to terminate the appointment of the President/CEO rest with the Board of Directors.  At the time of the appointment of a President/CEO that Board of Directors shall make public an explanation of how that appointee specifically meets the established criteria.

The NDP also recommends that CBC/Radio Canada establish a formal advisory mechanism to receive regular and ongoing input on the operation of the Corporation from representatives chosen by the employees of CBC/Radio Canada.