The 2019 Liberal election platform made Parliamentary reform a central commitment, promising to “give people a greater voice in Parliament, by improving the way Parliament works.” Yet Bill C-10, the Broadcasting Act reform bill, does the opposite, cutting mandated reviews of policy directions to the CRTC in at least half. The implications of the change are significant since it would mean that House of Commons and Senate committees would not longer review policy directions and Canadian Heritage Minister Steven Guilbeault would be poised to enact his secret policy direction without a full review. I have already written about the surprising secrecy associated with the bill including the failure to disclose how the government arrived at its estimated benefits, the secret content of the policy direction to the CRTC, and the removal of cabinet appeals.
Archive for February 16th, 2021
Recent Posts
Big Cost, Smaller Benefit: Government Modelling Pegs Likely Bill C-18 Revenues at Less Than Half of Parliamentary Budget Officer Estimates 
Scoping User Content Out of Bill C-11: Senate Committee Makes Much-Needed Change, But Will the Government Accept It? 
From Bad to Worse: Senate Committee Adds Age Verification Requirement for Online Undertakings to Bill C-11 
How the Government Is Using Bill C-18 to Pick Media Winners and Losers 
The Law Bytes Podcast, Episode 149: Ryan Clements on the FTX Collapse and Canada’s Approach to Crypto Regulation
