Carney Says He Has Plans for a ‘Vibrant’ CBC

The CBC-Radio Canada building in Montreal on Jan. 28, 2021. The Canadian Press/Ryan Remiorz

Liberal Leader Mark Carney says he has a plan to reform the CBC, and will be releasing the details soon.

“We understand the importance of reinforcing, promoting, supporting the French language in Quebec,” Carney said in response to a reporter’s question during a campaign stop in Montreal on March 28.

He said he is committed to a “viable” and “vibrant” public broadcaster and Radio-Canada, the French arm of CBC, and that his party will put forward a plan for reforming the network in the coming days.

Carney has criticized Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre’s plan to defund the CBC, saying the broadcaster plays an important role. Poilievre has said that although he would defund the English-language CBC, he would keep funding Radio-Canada.

Conservatives’ CBC Plan

Poilievre has said defunding the CBC would save taxpayers more than $1 billion a year. He has also been critical of the broadcaster’s coverage, calling it biased.

On March 26, the Conservatives released a plan to fund Radio-Canada during a campaign stop in Quebec City. The Quebec-specific platform included the party’s pledge to preserve Radio-Canada programs.

During a stop in Winnipeg on March 29, Poilievre said the Conservatives would protect the French language.

”We support official bilingualism, and we will back up official bilingualism right across the country in all federal services and programs,” he said in response to a reporter’s question.

Liberals Propose Increased Funding for CBC

Carney’s comments follow a February proposal to increase funding for the CBC by Heritage Minister Pascale St-Onge, which would nearly double government funding for the broadcaster.

An advisory committee appointed by St-Onge nearly a year earlier was asked to recommend policy changes that could “strengthen and renew” CBC/Radio-Canada, according to a Feb. 20 government news release.

During a news conference the same day, St-Onge said public broadcasters in other G7 countries like England and Germany are $62 per person. She said that Canada’s funding was $33 per capita.

She proposed that Canada increase the per capita funding for CBC to $62 per person.

In 2024, CBC received $1.4 billion in federal funding. Under the Liberal proposal, the broadcaster would get $2.6 billion.

St-Onge said more funding could also eliminate ads on CBC’s platforms, including TV, radio, and online. However, she said the funding would be decided by the next leader and financial minister.

Matthew Horwood contributed to this article.