THE CANADIAN HERITAGE COMMITTEE REPORT ON A NEW CANADIAN CULTURAL POLICY
DISSENTING REPORT
PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE PARTY

The Progressive Conservative Party would like to acknowledge the huge contributions of so many Canadians who, either through personal appearances before the Committee or through the submission of briefs, kindly provided members of the Canadian Heritage Committee with their thoughts on what should be in a new Canadian cultural policy.

The Progressive Conservative Party is pleased that so many of their views are reflected within this report. In principle, we support the recommendations contained in the report. We feel that these recommendations, if accepted by the federal government, will help strengthen our very dynamic Canadian cultural identity.

Unfortunately, as with many reports, certain important issues were either overlooked or perhaps not given the proper attention they deserved. It is precisely for these reasons that the Progressive Conservative Party decided to include a dissenting report to try and address some of those issues.

One of our major disappointments with the report involves, in certain circumstances, a clear lack of substance being attached to the recommendations. In these instances, the Committee's report properly identifies some major deficiencies that exist within some of Canada's cultural industries, yet fails to provide concrete solutions beyond simply suggesting that more funding is required. I think we all recognize that additional funding is required to help many of our cultural institutions; therefore, we would have preferred seeing more precise ways or mechanisms for providing this much needed funding to these institutions.

The Progressive Conservative Party believes that a number of very important cultural issues were left out in this report. For instance, Canada's architectural heritage received no mention in this report yet plays an important economic and cultural role within communities across this country. Throughout the country, there are virtually thousands of Canadian landmarks that are in danger of losing their historical character to modernization. We believe that the report should have touched upon this very important part of Canadian history.

When discussing Canadian history, one cannot but notice that there is no mention of any suggestions for joint federal/provincial initiatives that would encourage a greater focus on teaching Canadian history within our school systems. It is sad to say that many of our Canadian children know very little about their own history. Because history plays such a huge role in helping define who we are, it seems a shame it did not receive proper mention in the report.

A number of Canadians appearing before the Committee lamented the lack of art education that is being offered in Canadian schools. Although we recognize this as being a provincial matter, it nevertheless begs mentioning that perhaps some kind of joint federal/provincial initiative could be devised to help address this deficiency.

With Canada continuing to benefit immensely from multiculturalism, we feel the report should have contained a greater emphasis on suggesting ways in which Canada could continue to expand its support for our ethnic communities.

Although Canada's National Parks play a very significant role in Canadian society, the report fails to make mention of their contribution. The federal government has already committed to creating a number of new national parks; therefore, a strong recommendation that they carry through with this important undertaking, as quickly as possible, would seem to have been appropriate.

With many of Canada's museums struggling to preserve their artefacts while also trying to maintain their building structures, many of which are recognized heritage buildings, we believe the report should include a stronger appeal for increased funding for the Museum Assistance Program (MAP).

Canadians are growing increasingly interested in genealogy. Census reports are not only important tools for helping us learn about our ancestry, they provide us with valuable information about circumstances that ultimately helped influence who we are as a people.

This report should have encouraged the federal government to ensure that all census records be made available to those interested presuming that an adequate time period has passed.

The report has ignored Canada's struggle to help protect our Canadian magazine industry. In light of the federal government's recent decision to amend Bill C-55 in response to U.S. demands, the Progressive Conservative Party believes that greater attention should have been devoted to the federal government's responsibility towards protecting our Canadian culture during future international trade negotiations.

We recognize that creating a policy that would satisfy everyone is virtually impossible; therefore, we look at the recommendations contained within this report not as any final solution but more as a new beginning in our quest to help Canadians learn more about themselves and their culture.

Submitted by:

Mark Muise, M.P.
P.C. Member
Canadian Heritage Committee