Citation Bill C-10 Bill introduced in the House of Commons of Canada Bill C-10 First reading October 29, 2007 | Enacted by Senate of Canada Introduced by MP Jim Flaherty | |
Enacted by House of Commons of Canada | ||
The Tax Amendments Act, 2006 is a Bill in the Canadian Legislature numbered as Bill C-10 of the second session of the 39th Parliament of Canada and containing a controversial clause that David Cronenberg and Sarah Polley have argued represents censorship of Canadian films. The long form title of the bill is "An Act to amend the Income Tax Act, including amendments in relation to foreign investment entities and non-resident trusts, and to provide for the bijural expression of the provisions of that Act". Among a 600-page list of minor changes to tax law, the bill contains a clause, Section 120(3)(b), that would give the government power to deny taxation benefits for films made in Canada if the government deems the content to be objectionable. Critics of the clause argue that it is equivalent to censorship because most Canadian films cannot afford to be produced without government assistance. The Bill was passed in the House of Commons October 29, 2007, but opposition parties later said that they did not notice the controversial part and several Senators have said that they intend to send the bill back to the House.
Iconic of the debate is a contemporary Canadian film titled Young People Fucking. The film contains no pornographic material and has received favourable reviews and a relatively wide distribution for a Canadian film, but has been cited by some Conservative Parliamentarians as an example of a film which would not receive financial aid under Bill C-10. Senators and MPs were invited to view an advance screening of the film.
The new conservative platform for the election of October 2008 planned for this bill to be repealed.