Statement made on 23 March 2011 by Senator Céline Hervieux-Payette
Hon. Céline Hervieux-Payette:
Honourable senators, my question is for the Leader of the Government in the Senate.
As you know, your government "generously" granted the province of Quebec the status of distinct society on November 27, 2006. That said, I do not need to remind you of the enormous contribution that Quebecers have made to culture on the national and international scene.
Take, for example, Quebec writers like Arlette Cousture, the author of the successful novel Les Filles de Caleb, which has sold over 300,000 copies worldwide; or Yann Martel, winner of the Man Booker Prize and the Prime Minister's "official book supplier." There are musical artists like Arcade Fire and Céline Dion, not to mention our filmmakers like Denys Arcand and Denis Villeneuve, who have won dozens of nominations and awards at a number of international film festivals. There is also the fabulous Xavier Dolan, who brought home an award from the prestigious Cannes Film Festival.
In our opinion, Quebec is indeed the cultural motor of the North American continent. It provides the entire world with a wide variety of unique cultural products, and they are not taxed in our province.
It should be noted that Quebecers pay an average of 25 per cent more for their cultural products than Canadians in other provinces because their market is smaller than the anglophone market — 330 million people versus 8 million on this part of the continent.
Recently, Ontario was granted several billion dollars for the GST. The previous Liberal government gave the Atlantic provinces close to a billion dollars, and British Columbia also received a very significant contribution for the GST. Quebec was expecting a contribution of $2.2 billion in this budget as compensation for the GST/QST, which it collects under a decision made by a previous Liberal government. The government's refusal to grant Quebec this $2.2 billion has made the Bloc Québécois and Quebec even more cynical; on one hand, the government recognizes Quebec as a distinct society but, on the other, it does not grant Quebec any compensation for the GST, which applies to cultural products.
Since the Government of Quebec has confirmed that cultural products are being targeted, can the minister tell us what the important reasons are for blocking this $2.2 billion when Quebecers are paying 25 per cent more for their cultural products?
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