Living out of a suitcase can’t be easy, and Conservative Leader Stephen Harper has now been criss-crossing the country for almost six weeks in his attempt to win the support of the majority of Canadian voters. Each day means different handlers, a different city and a different hotel room—and it all happens at a frantic pace.
So perhaps Canadians can forgive Harper for somehow misplacing his spine this past week.
While his spine was temporarily AWOL, Harper caved in to the demands of Canada’s artistic community and their ludicrous cries of censorship. At issue were amendments to Bill C-10 that would ostensibly deny federal tax credits to film projects that would be considered offensive by a majority of mainstream Canadians.
The battle had been going on for six months, and the government hadn’t budged in its resolve to be accountable to Canadians for the kinds of projects supported by their tax dollars.
But in the past couple of weeks, it became apparent that the issue had touched a nerve with Quebec voters and their drive to maintain a culture that is separate and distinct from the rest of Canada—but funded by money from Canada.
With one week before the election and Quebec support in rapid decline, Harper caved and made a commitment that simply isn’t in the best interests of Canadians.
It’s embarrassing to witness such a blatant grovel for votes and, frankly, it’s embarrassing to see him take on the likes of Margaret Atwood in a staring contest—and be the first to blink.
The one problem Harper couldn’t overcome in this stand-off was public perception.
The protests primarily came from high-profile artists (like Atwood and Grey’s Anatomy star Sandra Oh) who had a public stage and the public’s ear to complain about government cuts and a government that wanted to censor films according to its conservative ideology.
That’s the message the public heard, but it doesn’t represent the reality of the situation.
Yes, the Conservative government cut $45 million from arts funding this summer.
But Parliament already voted to provide $4 billion in funding for cultural programs in this fiscal year, so we’re talking about a $45 million cut from a multi-billion dollar budget—which is about one per cent.
In addition, arts funding under the Conservatives was 20 per cent higher than the amount provided by the Liberals in their last year of government (2006).
I can’t think of many government departments that would whine about a one per cent loss in funding if they had just received a whopping 20 per cent funding increase over the last two years!
The idea that Bill C-10 is about censorship and forcing a Conservative notion of morality on Canada’s artists is also blatantly false.
The bill was first introduced by the Liberal government back in 2002—so if there’s any ideology involved, it’s from the Liberals. Secondly, the bill was passed unanimously by Parliament in 2007—that means with the support of the Liberals!
The bill also passed two readings of the Liberal-dominated Senate before the cries of Conservative ‘censorship’ began. Given all this, how can this bill possibly represent some anti-cultural bias of Conservative ideology?
The bill would have allowed for scrutiny of project content before funding is granted, but that’s standard government procedure for every other kind of funding.
Scientists, medical researchers, social scientists and entrepreneurs don’t get an automatic pass to a grant.
Their proposed projects are scrutinized and considered for their potential benefit to society, and they don’t cry ‘censorship.’
Why should artistic projects be any different?
Considering content before handing over the cash isn’t censorship. It reflects common sense and responsible government.
The greatest irony in Harper’s about-face is that it still won’t win him the support of the arts community. Already prominent Canadian actor Sarah Polley has declared “it doesn’t negate the harm this government has caused to culture in this country.”
Of course she doesn’t provide any evidence for her claim, but it makes for great reading in the newspaper.
The president of ACTRA, the union of Canadian performers, also says the reversal isn’t enough to win their support.
Why? Because they still believe the Conservatives are ideologically opposed to certain types of arts and culture. Again, no evidence was provided to support the claim.
In sum, the Conservative government gave far more money to the arts than the Liberals and it tried to pass a Liberal-created bill that was in the best interests of Canadians.
In return, the arts community has complained about massive cuts and some conservative ideology being imposed on all film-makers.
Both complaints are false, but the public believed them. So Harper caved.
The one good thing that stems from Harper’s policy
reversal is that the Conservative party has now announced a $500 tax credit that parents can claim to offset fees for their child’s participation in arts and cultural activities like music or art lessons.
No doubt the artistic community will claim it’s a plan to inculcate the next generation in Conservative art and music, but by then the election will be over.
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