Post Tagged with: "c-32"

Behind the Scenes of Bill C-32: The Complete Ministerial Q & A

With the House of Commons back in session this week, it should not take long for copyright reform to reappear. Canadian Heritage Minister James Moore has already indicated the bill will be reintroduced unchanged from Bill C-32 and that the legislative committee will pick up where it left off without the need to hear from any persons or groups who appeared under Bill C-32. That suggests things could move very quickly with a few sessions and a march to passing the bill before the end of 2011.

My posts in the months leading up to the bill gave some sense of what was likely on the way and more recently I’ve written on the Wikileaks cables that demonstrate the remarkable U.S. influence over the Canadian copyright agenda. I’ve now obtained a series of documents that provide some useful insights into the behind-the-scenes work within the government and the C-32 legislative committee. While access-to-information requests typically exclude information about government bills, the death of Bill C-32 meant the information was fair game. Over the next week, I plan daily posts of various documents including the government’s full clause-by-clause analysis, its C-32 committee witness strategy, and an analysis of the submissions provided to the committee by dozens of groups and individuals.

The series starts with the complete question and answer document [15 MB PDF] prepared for Ministers Moore and Clement for their committee appearance in November 2010 (Scribd version embedded below). The document covers a wide range of anticipated questions and the official government response to each. The answers will not surprise as anyone following the issue will have heard the Ministers and other MPs repeat them regularly. Nevertheless, the more interesting scripted responses to key questions include (with some context in square brackets):

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September 21, 2011 37 comments News

Government to Reintroduce Bill C-32 “In Exactly the Same Form”

Canadian Heritage Minister James Moore has told the Canadian Press that the government plans to reintroduce Bill C-32 in “exactly the same form” as the legislation that died on the order paper with the election call earlier this year.  Moore suggested that the government plans to pick up where it […]

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September 9, 2011 28 comments News

The Cabinet Shuffle: Why a New Industry Minister May Not Mean Changed Policies or Big Delays

Yesterday’s cabinet shuffle sparked considerable discussion over the implications for digital policy issues including the digital economy strategy, telecom, copyright, and privacy (Reuters, Globe, Nowak). The changes – which see James Moore remain at Canadian Heritage but install Christian Paradis as the new Industry Minister – create a new ministerial combination that is often tasked with jointly addressing issues such as copyright and communications policy.

Tony Clement made digital policies a core part of his agenda both in terms of prioritizing the issues and using technology to actively communicate and interact with the public. Given the uncertainty of Paradis’ priorities and the need to become familiar with some complex files, it is understandable that many speculate the cabinet shuffle will slow the process of change and possibly alter the substance. I must admit that I’m not so sure. Every minister has the chance to put their own mark on departmental policies, but I suspect both the core substance of Canadian digital policy and the speed of change will remain largely unchanged.

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May 19, 2011 9 comments News

Del Mastro Says Bill C-32 Coming Back Intact

Consistent with the Conservative campaign platform, MP Dean Del Mastro tells the Toronto Sun that Bill C-32 will be reintroduced largely intact.

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May 18, 2011 12 comments News

Restrictive Copyright Plays Into Music Industry Myths

Dwayne Winseck’s Globe column dissects the music industry claims and find that the total industry has grown over the last 13 years. Winseck links the claims to copyright reform, concluding that “only once the myth that the music industry is in peril, and that it is the canary in the […]

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May 17, 2011 29 comments News