Mark Carney’s Liberals to protect Canada’s national identity by strengthening CBC/Radio-Canada

April 4, 2025

Montreal, QC – Today, Mark Carney announced a new Liberal plan to protect our Canadian identity by strengthening CBC/Radio-Canada. In this time of crisis, protecting our identity is a critical part of keeping Canada strong.

“A new Liberal government will never cower to President Trump’s attacks on Canada. In this kind of crisis, protecting Canada’s identity is part of securing Canada,” said Mark Carney, Leader of the Liberal Party of Canada. “With this plan, we will protect a reliable Canadian public forum in a sea of misinformation, so we can tell our own stories in our own languages. While Pierre Poilievre follows President Trump’s playbook to take aim at the institutions that make Canada strong, we are standing up for them.”

The Liberal plan to strengthen CBC/Radio-Canada will address its mandate and funding:

  • We will strengthen its mandate by:
    • Developing a governance plan with CBC/Radio-Canada to improve accountability, empower leadership, streamline processes, and tap into the institution’s innovative spirit;
    • Equipping them to further promote and support Canadian culture, including Québec’s unique culture which is at the heart of our national identity;
    • Strengthening local news with more local bureaus and reporters, so that all Canadians have access to timely, relevant, and reliable news;
    • Adding to their mandate the clear and consistent transmission of life-saving information during emergencies;
    • Fully equipping them to combat disinformation, so that Canadians have a news source they know they can trust; and,
    • Bolstering innovation and investing in new digital tools so that they can deliver the news when and how Canadians want it.
  • We will enhance CBC/Radio-Canada’s available resources and secure stable, long-term funding by:
    • Enshrining and protecting their funding by making it statutory, thereby empowering Parliament and the Canadian people – not ideologues – to decide the future of this critical institution; and,
    • Providing an initial $150 million funding increase, while directing CBC/Radio-Canada to develop a strategic plan consistent with this new mandate. That is expected to require a long-term funding level in line with the average funding of other national public broadcasters over time.

A Mark Carney-led government will stand strong against President Trump’s tariffs, create new jobs, cut taxes for the middle class, and build the fastest growing economy in the G7. Liberals will build Canada strong.

Backgrounder