Mr. Chairperson (Ben Sveinson): Order, please. Will the Committee of Supply please come to order. This section of the Committee of Supply will be considering the Estimates of the Department of Culture, Heritage and Citizenship. Does the honourable Minister of Culture have an opening statement?
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Hon. Rosemary Vodrey (Minister of Culture, Heritage and Citizenship): As minister of Manitoba Culture, Heritage and Citizenship, it is my privilege to introduce our 1998-99 Estimates for review. Manitoba Culture, Heritage and Citizenship oversees a diverse range of programs, initiatives and activities which promote and enhance the well-being, identity and prosperity and creativity of Manitobans. At the same time, we work with our many partners throughout these areas of responsibility to develop or strengthen opportunities for economic enhancement of our province.
My department's many areas of responsibility and activity include supporting arts funding, library services, recreation opportunities, identifying, evaluating and preserving heritage and historical resources, providing translation services, addressing immigration issues, encouraging multiculturalism and delivering a full spectrum of communication services to all government departments.
I am very proud of my staff and their accomplishments in Manitoba's continuing efforts to better utilize public resources and increase the quality of services to Manitobans. In this new fiscal year, Manitoba Culture, Heritage and Citizenship has committed to specific initiatives and actions which will help us sustain this momentum and further contribute to the vision of Manitoba as a vibrant, vital and dynamic society built on healthy communities.
The strategies we formulated last year, which we continue to follow, centre around these key objectives: establish a sustainable funding base for major agencies and cultural institutions; increase film, sound and new media production and infrastructure; develop and market arts and heritage economic initiatives; strengthen the province's networks of regional theme museums; increase the promotion of healthy, active lifestyles and community wellness; implement The Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act for the Manitoba government and other public bodies in the province; support the global marketing of Manitoba through a co-ordinated communication strategy; increase the number of immigrants through promotion and marketing; expand the provincial role in the settlement and retention of immigrants.
Using these objectives as our guide in assisting Manitobans to build a stronger, more vibrant and economically dynamic community, I have every confidence this coming year will be one of significant progress for our communities and our citizens. Our government is very proud of the arts community and recognizes its immense importance to our province and our citizens. My department continues to sustain its operating funding to Manitoba's major arts and cultural institutions in the 1999 budget. These institutions not only enhance the lives of Manitobans, they are important to the Manitoba economy.
This economic role is manifested in a variety of ways and impacts on other Manitoba sectors such as tourism. Art Walk, for example, is a collaboration between the Winnipeg Art Gallery and many of Winnipeg's private and not-for-profit galleries. Last summer, people from 15 countries, eight provinces and 10 states participated in this innovative tour of eight galleries in downtown Winnipeg and the Exchange District. Extra days and an extra month were added to the schedule to accommodate the increased demand from travellers, local schools and Manitobans from across the province.
Art Walk is an outstanding promotional venue for the talents of Manitoba artists and a model for the development of future community partnerships. This program's success underscores the ability of partnerships to develop and sustain the arts community as a productive and enriching component of our community. The arts community celebrated several significant anniversaries and achievements this past year which deserve recognition. These include the 75th anniversary of the Winnipeg Philharmonic Choir, the 50th anniversary of the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, the 25th anniversary of the Prairie Theatre Exchange, the 50th anniversary of the Ensemble folklorique de la Rivière Rouge. Roger Léveillé, poet, essayist and novelist, won the Prix du Consulat general de France 1997. The Manitoba Theatre Centre's Fringe Festival and the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra's New Music Festival set new attendance records.
In 1998-99 my department will continue to assist the growing contribution of the arts and cultural industry's growing contribution to the economic well-being of our province. By initiating and facilitating partnerships with the community and other government departments and agencies, the Arts Branch will provide strategic assistance to support the sector's rapid growth. For example, my department has signed an agreement of co-operation and partnership with Manitoba Industry, Trade and Tourism in the interests of encouraging and supporting economic growth and job creation in Manitoba's cultural industries.
Through its support to Manitoba Film and Sound Development Corporation, my department assists the promotion, production and marketing and growth of the film, television and sound recording industries in Manitoba. In 1997-98 Manitoba Film and Sound's $2.3 million in commitments supported film production budgets in excess of $20 million, generating an estimated gross economic benefit to Manitoba of $26 million.
To further promote film industry growth, the recently introduced Manitoba Film and Video Production Tax Credit will help Manitoba attract private investment and increase local film production opportunities. As a result, the industry projects that in 1998-99 film and video production activity should increase to $45 million, which, in turn, will stimulate increased employment and training opportunities for Manitobans.
The half-hour television mystery series, The Adventures of Shirley Holmes, which premiered on YTV in February 1997, has been renewed for a third season. Produced by Manitoba's Credo Entertainment Corporation, the series was recently the recipient of two awards from the Columbus International Film and Video Festival.
Manitoba was also the location for the filming of the $3-million direct-to-video action movie called Trucks, which was filmed in the area of Gunton, Manitoba, last August.
We have seen impressive increases and achievements, not only in the film and video production industry, but also in other artistic sectors, such as the recording industry. Veteran Manitoba composer, international performer and recording artist, Heather Bishop, was recently awarded the 1997 Gold Award by the Parents Choice Foundation and the National Parenting Publications Gold Award, recognizing the best in children's media.
Local Francophone composer and recording artist, Jake Chenier, was awarded first prize in the 1997 John Lennon songwriting contest. Five Manitoba recording artists--Heather Bishop, Al Simmons, Stephan Bauer, Steve Bell and the Wyrd Sisters--recently received nominations for the prestigious Juno Awards. Mr. Bell received a Juno for Best Gospel Album. All these projects were funded by the Manitoba Film and Sound Development Corporation. As well, several Manitoba recording artists, such as the New Meanies and the Watchmen, will have major international releases coming out over the next few months.
Our literary sector is a steady contributor to the achievements of Manitoba's cultural industries with book publishing now a $3-million industry. The department's Book Publisher Support Programs will continue to provide support to this growth industry and enable Manitoba book publishers to expand marketing, improve operations and develop new product lines.
Manitoba continues to produce award-winning authors and playwrights, such as Ian Ross, who was the 1997 recipient of the Governor General's Award for drama for his play, fareWel. Manitoba author Miriam Toews was nominated for the 1997 Stephen Leacock award for humour for her book Summer of My Amazing Luck, published by Manitoba's Turnstone Press. Two books published by Pemmican Publications were chosen for the 1997-98 Our Choice List by the Canadian Children's Book Centre.
As part of its support to Manitoba's Francophone arts and cultural industry sector, the department provided support to the Société des Communications du Manitoba Inc. for its French language film and video industry development project to provide training and professional development opportunities in the province's French language film and video production industry. The Conseil Jeunesse Provincial Inc. received assistance for the arts and cultural component of the second western Francophone games. Both awards were matched by the federal government through the Canada-Manitoba general agreement on the promotion of official languages.
In 1997-98, the department launched a new program to support innovative marketing projects by Manitoba's private art galleries. The visual arts marketing assistance program makes it possible for galleries to participate in joint marketing initiatives and to take advantage of major arts marketing opportunities such as the Year of Asia Pacific, the Canadian International Business Strategy and the Pan American Games. This year, eight galleries received marketing assistance to promote Manitoba's professional visual arts and crafts people at home and abroad.
In an exciting partnership initiative with the Native Affairs Secretariat and Industry, Trade and Tourism, my department provided support to Manitoba aboriginal performing and visual artists, sculptors and gallery owners to participate in the first-ever Canadian indigenous arts festival in Scottsdale, Arizona. My department will continue to provide financial assistance for the international touring by the Royal Winnipeg Ballet. This year, the department assisted the RWB in a highly successful European tour which included Greece, Switzerland, the Netherlands and their participation in the Manitoba trade mission to the United Kingdom.
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For the 1997 Canada Summer Games in Brandon last August, the department provided consultation and funding towards cultural programming at the games. We are pleased that our efforts supported the achievement of high quality opening and closing ceremonies and other cultural activities. These significantly added to the quality and enjoyment of the Canada Summer Games and heightened the national awareness of Manitoba as a desirable tourism destination.
In my capacity as minister in charge of millennium celebrations, my department has been in discussion with other departments and levels of government respecting Manitoba's marking of the millennium. Manitoba's plans will be announced in the near future.
My department is particularly proud of our support to arts programming undertaken by community organizations in rural and remote communities. In 1997-98, the department supported some 250 arts development projects in rural and northern Manitoba including 15 projects in remote communities. The latter represents a 36 percent increase over the number of remote projects supported in '96-97. Remote projects have ranged from a cultural exchange among high school drama students from Norway House and Steinbach to performances by Manitoba Theatre for Young People, Fred Penner and the Little Thunderbirds.
Over the past decade, my department has invested more than $29 million in restoring, maintaining and enhancing the facilities of our major cultural institutions. In 1998-99, we will raise that figure to $31 million. Many of these projects, such as the capital repairs to exterior cladding on several major cultural institutions are multiyear initiatives which will be completed in the next few months. The Winnipeg Art Gallery is entering the final phase of its repair project a year ahead of schedule and similar repairs to the Nonsuch Gallery and the Manitoba Museum's research tower will soon be completed.
In addition to maintaining existing cultural facilities, we have committed to several significant projects which will greatly benefit Manitoba communities. The Centre du Patrimoine, a Francophone archive, is under construction at the Centre Culturel Franco-Manitobain and is due for completion this spring. This is a $3-million federal-provincial cost-shared project to be managed by the Société Historique de St. Boniface.
The new Italian cultural centre will be completed this spring with support from Manitoba, Canada and the government of Italy. We have assisted the Mennonite Heritage Village in Steinbach with the final phases of their construction and development of this major tourist attraction.
Finally, a new world-class gallery space to house the Hudson's Bay collection at the Manitoba Museum will open in 1999 as a result of the collaborative efforts of Manitoba, the federal government, the Hudson's Bay Company and the museum itself. We will also continue our support for community initiatives which build and enhance recreational, cultural and social infrastructure, so essential to the quality of life and wellness of Manitobans. The Community Places Program which since 1988 has contributed some $43 million to more than 2,200 community facility projects valued at $150 million is expected to assist another 150 projects this year.
These projects illustrate the many partnerships that my department has successfully developed. This highly effective partnership approach is good for the community, creates employment opportunities and provides lasting benefits to Manitoba in the years to come.
My department is committed to realizing the concept of universal access to library services for Manitobans. To meet this objective, the Public Library Services Branch has initiated several projects to improve the accessibility and range of services offered in rural and northern public libraries. Staff continue to provide design development, training and implementation support to assist Manitoba's library system in preparing for the 21st Century. The Manitoba Public Library Information Network, or MAPLIN, will enable all automated public libraries to connect with the Manitoba Union Catalogue and the Public Library Services circulation system.
Forty-one of the 52 regional libraries are now using the MAPLIN network to access the Public Library Services central database. The network assists in establishing libraries as community resource centres and in providing access to global information networks. It will soon be a key Internet accessible tool for our library system. We have also been co-operating with Industry Canada to encourage communities to provide public access, often in public libraries, to the Internet through the Community Access project.
I am also pleased to note new initiatives in the areas of developing community heritage leadership which my staff have facilitated. At their annual conference held October 25, 1997, in Baldur, 61 municipal government delegates representing municipal heritage advisory committees from across Manitoba decided to form an umbrella organization, Community Heritage Manitoba. Community Heritage Manitoba, along with other provincial heritage organizations, jointly hosted an event in Portage la Prairie called A Vision of Heritage which I attended May 2. This special one-day event brought together heritage community representatives from across the province to discuss the challenges and opportunities facing the heritage community today. It was a day of information sharing and identifying areas for joint co-operation and action. I was pleased my staff were asked by Community Heritage Manitoba to help facilitate this gathering. It is an example of the kind of partnership with community volunteers that I am very proud to foster and support.
My department continues to work closely with other dedicated heritage volunteer groups, such as the Inglis Area Heritage Committee, which wishes to restore and reuse five grain elevators that are the last such row of elevators in Canada and have been declared nationally significant. My staff have worked closely with their federal colleagues and the Inglis Area Heritage Committee to gain access to capital funding for this project from Parks Canada's national cost-sharing program. Canadian Heritage allocated $1 million from their national cost-sharing program which was announced at a ceremony in Inglis. The Inglis Area Heritage Committee has embarked on a fundraising campaign to match this level of support, and I am very pleased that we have given strong support over a number of years to reach this important juncture.
My staff have been working closely with the Exchange District Business Improvement Zone to prepare an interpretive plan for this important heritage area and potential first-class tourist destination.
We will continue to work co-operatively with Manitoba Hydro and First Nations communities in northern Manitoba to identify and to protect archaeological sites in the Churchill River diversion area. Approximately 60,000 artifacts have been collected, 54 burial sites identified and managed, and 413 new archaeological sites recorded in the study between 1990 and 1997.
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Mr. Chairperson: Order, please. The time being five o'clock, committee rise.