Merci, Monsieur le President. On February 15th, the Canadian Radiotelevision and Telecommunications Commission ("CRTC") announced that it would not review Cabin Radio's application to take its programming on air with a new FM radio station. There are a number of problems with this decision, and it needs to be reversed.
First, while I respect the authority of this quasijudicial regulator, I am concerned with the lack of NWT representation on this body. The legislation establishing the CRTC states that federal cabinet appoints up to 13 members. The only requirements are that an individual must be a Canadian citizen, ordinarily resident in Canada, and not have any direct role or interest in the telecommunications sector. If you look at the CRTC website, there are now eight members and one apparent vacancy on the board, with geographic representation from five regions where the northern territories are lumped in with adjacent provinces.
For the first time ever, a northern resident, a Yukon First Nation citizen, was appointed in August 2019. This is a good thing but why is the NWT lumped in with Alberta in terms of representation on the CRTC?
That BC and Yukon commissioner was also one of the two dissenting opinions on the Cabin Radio decision. I want to quote a few points from her dissenting opinion: "There was not enough evidence on the record to show me that Yellowknife cannot sustain a second commercial radio station," and "the Commission may wish to consider a departure from its general practice not to accept further applications for a commercial radio station to serve the Yellowknife market for two years from the date of the decision."
Another dissenting opinion had the following to say, Mr. Speaker. "The existing commercial radio stations in Yellowknife cannot bar competition indefinitely by citing unprofitability. Diversity of voices should be supported as much in a somewhat remote northern community as elsewhere in Canada. Contrary to the decision, I believe publishing the applications received and proceeding to a hearing is the appropriate and timely response. The alternative is further delay."
While I personally disagree with the CRTC decision, the public wants to know if Cabinet is doing anything about this situation. I think we also need a more systemic fix to ensure that the NWT's interests are known and understood by the CRTC through its membership. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member for Frame Lake. Members' statements. Member for Thebacha.
