Culture and Heritage ministers meet in Orford
The annual conference of federal, provincial and territorial ministers responsible for culture and heritage took place yesterday in Orford.
Discussions focused on cultural policy in the digital age, cultural industries and the North American free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), heritage conservation and the priorities for the 2018-2020 Federal-provincial and Territorial Culture and Heritage Table (FPTCH).
The conference was co-chaired by Mélanie Joly, Minister of Canadian Heritage and Luc Fortin, Quebec’s Minister of Culture and Communications and Minister responsible for the Protection and Promotion of the French Language. The two ministers held a brief press conference at Estrimont Hotel yesterday afternoon to relay the highlights of the conference.
“In the current context of the NAFTA renegotiation, cooperation with the other governments of Canada is becoming particularly important to ensure the vitality of our cultural industries and preserve the cultural exemption,” Fortin stated.
The day before the meeting, the FPT ministers held a discussion session on the preservation and promotion of Indigenous languages with representatives from the Assembly of First Nations, Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami and Métis National Council.
During yesterday’s conference, Minister Joly announced that for the first time in Canada’s 150 years, the government will adopt a law to protect Indigenous languages.
Work on the law was initiated on June 15, Joly said, and is being developed with First Nations representatives.