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: Michael Geist

Bill C-61 Opposition Mounting in Local Ridings

By Michael Geist

A little over a month has passed since Bill C-61 was introduced by Industry Minister Jim Prentice in the House of Commons.  The bill generated considerable negative media attention and a remarkable outpouring of concern from tens of thousands of Canadians.  We are now also seeing those concerns played out at a local level: 

• At least two MPs have promised town hall meetings, including Sukh Dhaliwal, MP for Newton - North Delta, who has announced plans for a townhall meeting on July 30th.
• Local groups are meeting with MPs and the Minister.  Several have established wikis to share information (Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, Vancouver).
• Bill Siksay, the NDP MP for Burnaby-Douglas devotes the front page of his monthly household flyer to the bill (hat tip: Digital-Copyright.ca)
• IT World Canada runs an interview with Vancouver Centre NDP candidate Michael Byers, who is highly critical of C-61.
• Tom King, NDP candidate in the Guelph by-election, has already declared that copyright should be an issue.
• Local papers are covering the story and featuring regular letters to the editor such as this one from the Nanaimo News Bulletin that declares C-61 a "blatant sellout."

While it is far too early to predict what this will mean, there should be no doubt that copyright is quickly emerging as a political issue that each political party ignores at its peril.

Full post as published by Michael Geist on July 15, 2008 (boomark / email).