In the wake of the Throne Speech, the Conseil provincial du secteur des communications (CPSC) of CUPE has noted with satisfaction that the federal government intends to take on the issue of corporate income tax avoidance by the digital giants and seems determined to make a difference so that the GAFAM has regulatory obligations to abide by and shares their income with the media.

Since 2014, the CPSC has been sounding the alarm about the lack of regulation of digital platforms in Canada and demanding that the government re-establish regulatory equity between traditional media and Web giants.

“It is about time this issue, which is crucial to our cultural sovereignty and to the sustainability of local news produced by professional journalists, comes to a head!” declared Benoit Bouchard, president of CUPE Quebec.

The CPSC is also pleased that the Government of Canada is willing to invest in broadband Internet service in rural areas over the next two years and to improve the Universal Broadband Fund. However, CPSC is demanding that the government ensure that the Fund have rules in place to ensure compliance with collective agreements and that any subsidized work not be contracted out to enable companies to generate additional profits at the expense of taxpayers.

“Given the pandemic and the thousands of workers who are unemployed, it is more important  than ever that every dollar invested by Canadians go toward maintaining and creating jobs across the country,” said Tulsa Valin-Landry, the acting president of the CPSC.