Hon. Francis Fox:

Honourable senators, I am glad to hear the Leader of the Government in the Senate talk about freedom of expression and opinion, because my question concerns Bill C-10.

The minister is no doubt aware that people in the audiovisual industry across Canada have raised a storm of protest against Bill C-10. This bill would give the Conservative government the power to censor productions or influence their content by refusing to issue tax credits. Individuals and organizations such as David Cronenberg, Denise Robert, Roger Frappier, the Association des réalisateurs et réalisatrices du Québec, ACTRA, the Directors Guild, the Canadian Film and Television Production Association, the Writers’ Union, PEN and editorial writers for several newspapers including The Globe and Mail, have understood that unless the bill is amended, such provisions would destabilize Canada’s entire film industry by irreparably undermining financing for Canadian productions.

Can the minister tell us whether her government would be willing to introduce an amendment in the Senate to prevent this from happening?

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