TORONTO, ON (September 24, 2020) – ACTRA was pleased to see the federal Government’s commitment to building strong Canadian cultural industries included in yesterday’s Speech from the Throne. The Government pledged to ensure digital giants share their revenue more fairly with creators and will also require them to contribute to the creation, production, and distribution of Canadian stories on screen, in lyrics, in music, and in writing.

“After years of consultations, we welcome the Canadian government taking action to level the playing field between traditional and digital broadcasters,” said ACTRA National President David Sparrow. “We are eager to move forward with legislation to ensure all content providers contribute to the creation and promotion of Canadian content. This will strengthen our screen industry and our economy for generations to come.”

The Government also signaled in yesterday’s speech that further support would be available for the cultural industries, including the performing arts.

“This is welcome news because the film and television industry has been hit hard by the pandemic,” Sparrow added. “During the shutdown of all our productions last spring, many gaps in our social safety net were exposed, causing our members to rely on the Canada Emergency Response Benefit. We are pleased to hear that modernizing the Employment Insurance system to include self-employed and gig economy workers is a government priority. We look forward to hearing the details and seeing the legislation.”

About ACTRA:

ACTRA (Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists) is the national union of professional performers working in English-language recorded media in Canada. ACTRA represents the interests of over 27,000 members across the country – the foundation of Canada’s highly acclaimed professional performing community.

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Media Contact: Carol Taverner, Public Relations Officer, ACTRA National
tel: 416-644-1519, email: ctaverner@actra.ca