Tories say media have been bought with Liberal funding

OTTAWA — Federal Finance Minister Bill Morneau says the Conservatives are making spurious partisan arguments about his plan to help the news industry with tax measures.

Morneau offered a little more insight into the government’s objective Thursday morning at an Economic Club of Canada event in Ottawa, saying the change in the media landscape has been dramatic and strong journalism is essential for a healthy democracy.

But details on how the new incentives will work are scant. Bitter politics have quickly filled the void.

“What guarantee do we have that they will not use this slush fund as a gigantic propaganda machine for the Liberal party” Conservative finance critic Pierre Poilievre chirped in question period, later adding, “Isn’t it true that this government just believes the job of the media is to shower praise on the prime minister and the job of taxpayers is to pay for it all?”

The Conservatives have also taken to social media to say that journalists will be bought. Conservative MP Michelle Rempel tweeted: “Most news stories in Canada will have to carry the label ’sponsored content — Trudeau’ because Justin Trudeau is spending half a billion dollars to buy the news. RIP free speech. RT if you stand opposed to this!”

The federal government announced Wednesday that it wants to help the struggling industry with tax credits and tax incentives valued at nearly $600 million over the next five years.

The government said it will establish an independent panel of journalists to define journalism standards and determine eligibility for the tax benefits.