The federal government seems to want to take control of broadcasting regulation at the expense of the independence of the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC).Subsection 7(7) allows the government to specify the expenses to be incurred by operations of broadcasting undertakings, including: - developing, financing, producing or promoting Canadian audio or audio-visual programs, including independent productions, for broadcasting by broadcasting undertakings; - supporting, promoting or training Canadian creators of audio or audio-visual programs for broadcasting by broadcasting undertakings; or - supporting participation by persons, groups of persons or organizations representing the public interest in proceedings before the commission under this All of these very specific grounds for intervention represent a potential violation of the CRTC’s autonomy and are absent from Section 7 of the Broadcasting Act in its current form.This expansion of the powers of the cabinet opens the door to a politicization of broadcasting regulation in this country, which the establishment of the CRTC sought to avoid.However, its independence from political authority remains fundamental to “the freedom of expression and the journalistic, creative and programming independence enjoyed by broadcasting undertakings” (Section 2(3) of the Act).Extensive statutory powers have been granted to this regulatory body, and an exceptionally specialized mandate requires the CRTC to consider and balance complex public interest considerations in regulating an entire industry.” It would be unfortunate if the Canadian government deviated from the current state of affairs and interfered with the CRTC’s prerogatives, a situation that could be avoided by deleting subsection 7(7) from Bill C-11, as well as subsections 10(1.2) and 34.995 that seek to accomplish the same end."