The Procedure and House Affairs Committee met to study the 2026-27 main estimates for the Leaders' Debates Commission and to hear testimony on strengthening social trust and increasing civic engagement. Appearing were Michel Cormier, Executive Director and Acting Commissioner of the Leaders' Debates Commission; Samantha Reusch, Executive Director of Apathy is Boring; Michael Geist, Canada Research Chair in Internet and E-Commerce Law at the University of Ottawa, as an individual; and Philippe Marcoux, Information and Training Director of the Quebec Press Council.
Michel Cormier presented the commission's request for $3 million in funding for 2026-27, noting that $2.3 million is a reserve accessible only if an election is called, while $739,000 covers salaries and operations. He highlighted cost reductions, with the 2025 debates costing under $1.1 million, down from $1.7 million in previous cycles, achieved by using CBC/Radio-Canada's Montreal facility and reducing staffing. Cormier recommended that the commission no longer organize post-debate press scrums, leaving that to political parties, while continuing to accredit journalists for on-site access to the debate venue, arguing this would reduce tensions over media accreditation.
Samantha Reusch testified that young Canadians are not apathetic but feel distanced from democratic institutions, citing a Privy Council Office study finding that one in four Canadians believes institutions need to be torn down, with these attitudes concentrated among youth. She recommended creating a Canadian democracy fund with at least $20 million per year for five years, delivered through an arm's-length granting mechanism to civil society organizations, to close the gap between people and institutions. Reusch emphasized that meeting young people where they are, through peer-to-peer conversations and off-line engagement, is more effective than social media outreach, and she noted that trust in elected officials is low among youth.
Michael Geist identified three risks to civic engagement: targeted hate and threats against those who speak out, which chill participation; chronic underfunding of civil society groups, creating an imbalanced policy debate; and public perception that consultations are performative, citing Bill C-4's privacy provisions and the AI consultation as examples. He argued that Bill C-18 led to blocked news links on Meta platforms, harming access to reliable information and filling the void with less reliable content, and that Bill C-11 has yielded little money and faces legal and trade challenges. Geist stressed that leaders must explicitly call out anti-Semitism without conflating it with other hate, given the disproportionate violence against Jewish Canadians, and criticized media coverage for contributing to the problem.
Philippe Marcoux defined disinformation as false information spread to manipulate, calling it the greatest short-term global threat per the World Economic Forum, and argued that combating it requires promoting quality journalism and public awareness. He presented the Quebec Press Council's video game, Colonie 404, which teaches young people to verify sources and recognize their role in spreading disinformation, but noted that many users are unaware of their responsibility. Marcoux disagreed with conflating media bias with disinformation, stating that traditional media, while imperfect, does not intentionally spread falsehoods, and he cautioned that attacking media credibility opens the door to malicious actors.
The committee also discussed procedural matters, including the approval of the main estimates for the Leaders' Debates Commission and other items, with members agreeing to move forward without further debate.
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