Canadian Taxpayers Federation Federal Director Aaron Wudrick released the following statement in response to today’s announcement by the federal government regarding its $600 million media bailout:

“Canadian taxpayers should not be forced to subsidize any industry, and that includes the media.

“Media independence is critical to any functioning democracy, and efforts to make media dependent on government handouts obviously undermines that independence.

“Worse still, by putting unions and industry lobbyists in charge of determining who should receive handouts and tax credits, the Trudeau government has effectively put the fox in charge of the henhouse.

“We call on the Trudeau government to abandon this wasteful and ill-advised policy before it does even more damage to public trust in Canadian media.”