Mark Carney, the leader of Canada’s Liberal Party, has promised to significantly increase funding for CBC/Radio-Canada if elected, positioning the public broadcaster as a vital defender of Canadian culture and identity in an era of rising foreign disinformation and ideological attacks.
During a press conference held in Montreal on Friday, Carney announced his party’s commitment to strengthen the national broadcaster by modernizing its governance and ensuring greater transparency. He also pledged an annual funding increase of $150 million to continue until CBC/Radio-Canada reaches financial parity with other major public broadcasters like France Télévisions, BBC, and ARD in Germany.
“President Trump wants to erase our culture—the very culture that defines both Quebec and Canada,” said Carney. “But we will never let that happen.”
He emphasized that CBC/Radio-Canada is a cornerstone of Canadian identity, especially as the country grapples with a flood of misinformation and online manipulation from foreign actors. “In a time of foreign disinformation,” Carney said, “our public broadcaster is a vital source of truth.”
Modernization and Local Journalism
Echoing the vision put forward earlier this year by Heritage Minister Pascale St-Onge, Carney said the revamp of CBC/Radio-Canada’s governance would make the institution more transparent and accountable. He also stressed the need to expand local journalism, calling for more newsrooms and regional offices across Canada to ensure comprehensive coverage of diverse communities.
“We can’t ask our public broadcaster to do all this without giving it the resources it needs,” he added.
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Cross-Party Budget Approval
One of the key changes under a Carney-led government would be that the public broadcaster’s budget would require full parliamentary approval, rather than being solely controlled by the federal Cabinet. This measure, Carney explained, is meant to safeguard the broadcaster from being at the mercy of political ideologies and ensure its longevity beyond party lines.
Poilievre’s Opposition
In stark contrast, Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre has repeatedly stated his intention to cut CBC’s funding, while maintaining French-language programming via Radio-Canada. At a press conference in Trois-Rivières, Poilievre reiterated that eliminating CBC would have “no impact” on Radio-Canada and criticized Carney’s proposal as another example of unchecked Liberal spending.
“After 10 years of Liberal overspending, Carney now wants to pile on even more expenses,” he said.
Broader Political Reactions
Carney’s stance received support from other major parties. Jagmeet Singh, leader of the New Democratic Party (NDP), strongly endorsed the idea of investing in the public broadcaster as a way to preserve the French language and Quebec culture. “It’s more important than ever to invest in our culture and in public broadcasting,” Singh said. “It’s fundamental to defending who we are.”
Bloc Québécois leader Yves-François Blanchet took a more nuanced stance. While he didn’t fully endorse Carney’s plan, he acknowledged the value in exploring new funding models for CBC/Radio-Canada and indicated that several proposals by Minister St-Onge were worth discussing in a future Parliament.
“It’s the kind of conversation we should have going forward,” Blanchet remarked.
A Cultural Battleground
The debate over CBC/Radio-Canada funding has become emblematic of broader political divisions in Canada—between those who see public broadcasting as a cultural safeguard and those who view it as an outdated, expensive institution. Carney has framed this issue not just in terms of media, but as a fight for national identity, language, and sovereignty.
With the next federal election on the horizon, the fate of CBC/Radio-Canada is shaping up to be a key issue—especially in Quebec, where public broadcasting holds deep cultural significance.
This article is originally published on ledroit.
