Referral of CBC licence renewal to CRTC

Summary#

The Governor in Council has sent the CRTC’s decision to renew the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation’s licences back to the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission for a new hearing and reconsideration. The order says the original decision from June 22, 2022 may weaken key public-interest objectives in the Broadcasting Act and asks the CRTC to look again at how the CBC supports local news, children’s programming, original French‑language work, and independent producers.

What it does#

• Refers Broadcasting Decision CRTC 2022-165 (the licence renewals issued on June 22, 2022) back to the CRTC for reconsideration and a new hearing.
• Says the referral is made under section 28 of the Broadcasting Act.
• Instructs the CRTC to consider how to ensure the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation continues to make a significant contribution to:
  • local news;
  • children’s programming;
  • original French‑language programming;
  • programming produced by independent producers.
• Notes the referral was made after the Governor in Council received 16 petitions asking that the decision be set aside or sent back.

Who's affected#

• Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (the national public broadcaster).
• Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (the regulator) — it must hold a new hearing and reconsider its earlier decision.
• Independent producers and the film/TV production sector — many of the petitioners were production associations, unions, and guilds.
• Groups involved in local news, children’s TV, and original French‑language production (including the Ministère de la Culture et des Communications du Québec and private-broadcaster representatives who also petitioned).
• The broader Canadian TV and online audiences, to the extent licence rules affect what programming is produced and shown.
  (If unclear: the order does not spell out exact new rules or who will pay for changes.)

Why it matters#

• The referral could lead to new or restored licence conditions that require the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation to guarantee minimum levels of certain kinds of Canadian programming.
• That matters to viewers and creators because it could affect the amount of local news, children’s shows, French‑language productions, and work available to independent producers.
• It may also influence how the CBC divides resources between traditional broadcast services and online services — an ongoing concern raised in the petitions.
• The CRTC will reconsider and could confirm, change, or rescind its original decision; the order does not itself change the licences.