CCA Bulletin 19/10 - What are the Department of Canadian Heritage's Priorities for 2010-11?

The Canadian Conference of the Arts (CCA) is still working on its detailed Analysis of the 2010 federal budget, which is delayed as we wait for answers from the government on a number of issues.

As part of its Budget Analysis on arts, culture and heritage, the CCA examines the Department of Canadian Heritage’s Report on Plans and Priorities published in the spring. This document is the expenditure plan for the Department. It provides details on priorities, human resource requirements, major capital projects, grants and contributions, and net program costs. As such, this document reflects the intentions of the Department to take action on certain files, and presents a comprehensive examination of the Department’s priorities, program architecture and management structures. (more)

What are your thoughts on the Department of Canadian Heritage’s Report on Plans and Priorities? Comment below.

CCA Bulletin 16/10 - The House of Commons is off for the summer

Just the Facts

Last week, members of the House of Commons left the Hill for the summer, with MPs returning to their ridings to mull over the work ahead in the fall. Meanwhile, the Senate is still trying to deal with the massive omnibus budget bill, C-9. Members of its Finance Committee are saying that they will stay as long as it takes to get through the 904 page document.

So, from the arts and culture perspective, what has been accomplished in the 65 days that the House has been sitting since the infamous prorogation that was granted by the Governor General last December? Notably, since the opening of the third session of the 40th Parliament on March 3, there has been more policy making with regards to our sector in comparison to the two preceding sessions. Several important pieces of legislation are now on the table for the House of Commons and Senate, making the fall session a likely platform for lively debates. The only deterrent would be another federal election, a scenario currently deemed unlikely by most observers! In this bulletin, the Canadian Conference of the Arts (CCA) looks at the state of affairs on Parliament’s Order Paper and reviews current consultations which may affect the arts, culture and heritage sector. (more)

CCA's 2010 Federal Budget Analysis

Here is our executive summary of the 2010 Federal Budget:

The 2010 Budget includes stable funding to arts and culture with no cuts, but also yields no new investments into the creative economy. The CCA sees no investment towards cultural infrastructure, or funds for promotion abroad and audience development. It is encouraging that charities are given more flexible means to conduct business, and research granting associations will have an increased ability to fund higher education within the knowledge economy. Moving forward, some concerns include administrative reforms, freezes on departmental operating budgets, and changes to strategic reviews. These measures may not be viewed as cuts at the moment, but may lead to financial difficulties for the arts sector down the road.

To read the whole analysis, go to our website, then post your comments here - we'd love to hear from you!

2010 Federal Budget

Today, as the third session of Canada's 40th Parliament is launched with the Speech from the Throne, participate in an online discussion!

The CCA will publish bulletins analyzing how the Speech from the Throne and how the 2010 Federal Budget will impact arts and culture in Canada. Specifically, we will look at new funding initiatives for arts and culture, spending on cultural infrastructure, promotion of arts abroad, and development of new audiences.

We also hope to see plans to implement a digital strategy, new copyright legislation, and other innovative steps in the realms of telecommunications and taxation.

Over the next couple of days, and the following weeks look out for our evaluation of the Main Estimates, and the impact of deficit reduction on the Department of Canadian Heritage and other cultural agencies. We will also be keeping a watchful eye on how federal deficit reduction will be compounded by steps taken by provinces.

We hope this post will be the first in creating a dialogue about this new session of Canada's 40th Parliament. Use this thread to post comments, questions, links, and anything those interested in the arts would like to learn!