Details of budget

While difficult, the solutions contained in our 2014-2015 budget align with our strategy 2015: Everyone, Every Way and are the results of informed choices that were made with an eye to the future. The following key principles were followed in finding solutions to the budget pressures:

National Presence:

  • Prime time television must perform;
  • Talk programming must resonate;
  • National news must continue to be a service of record; and
  • National websites must continue to strive for impact and differentiation.

Regional Presence:

  • Our focus and commitment to the regions must remain; however
  • There is an urgent need to modernize/rationalize how we deliver programs and services in light of budget realities.

Digital Presence:

  • 5% of media programming budgets will continue to be allocated to digital;
  • We must protect strategically important projects; and
  • Resources can be focused on a smaller number of high-impact initiatives.

The cuts entail $130 million and the elimination of 657 Full-Time Equivalent positions over two years, the majority of which, 573, will occur in this fiscal year.

Total Budget reductions:
$130 million (plus resulting severance $33.5 million)

English Services French Services Corporate Services
$82.4 million $42.3 million $4.7 million

Total positions equivalent to FTEs affected:
657 over two years, 573 immediately

Service Regions Toronto Montreal Foreign TBD Total
English Services 99.9 166.7 11.5 1.0 55.0 334.1
French Services 52.7 7.0 170.4 0.0 0.0 230.1
Corporate Services 4.0 4.0 1.0 0.0 0.0 9.0
TOTAL 156.6 177.7 182.9 1.0 55.0 573.2

For further details, click here.

Context

Today’s budget decisions are helping re-imagine tomorrow’s CBC/Radio-Canada.
The following examples shed some light on what kind of a public broadcaster we will become.

Sports:

CBC and Radio-Canada are out of the business of competing with private broadcasters for professional sports rights and we will cover amateur sports on a break-even basis. However, we remain committed to bringing signature events of national importance, like the Olympics, to all Canadians.

Advertising Sales:

There is an urgent need to reduce our costs and to share our vision for a Canada-wide, multiplatform offering with our business partners. CBC/Radio-Canada’s newly integrated revenue group will provide a more streamlined service to advertisers.

Regions:

All reductions were made with the criteria of maintaining our presence, maintaining quality of service and protecting news-gathering capabilities. But, to do this:
  • Resources, and sometimes programming, had to be consolidated;
  • Local programming in some communities will be reduced, and replaced with regional, network or syndicated programming; and
  • Planned expansions are cancelled. This includes plans for a station in London, Ontario.

  • Measures that CBC will implement to reduce costs:

    • • End of the Local Service Expansion (London local news expansion and all other additional markets in the plan will be cancelled)

    • • Regionalize some news programs:

      • - Ten minute late night newscast in the North eliminated
        - Alberta weekend news from Calgary and Edmonton now “regionalized” from one location
        - Thunder Bay afternoon CBC Radio show cancelled, consolidated to Sudbury and made into a regional show for Northern Ontario
        - Windsor's local afternoon show will become a regional show for Southern Ontario and will include London, Kitchener and Waterloo, excluding Ottawa and Toronto (which have local shows)

    • • Cancellations and changes to some regional performance shows on radio

    • • Saturday CBC Radio Two program In Tune from Calgary to be replaced by Choral Concert., from Calgary (formerly from Halifax)

    • • Further reductions (50%) of regional live music production

    • • Substantially reducing the sports department and refocusing on new sports strategy

    • • Two daytime cooking shows cancelled: In the Kitchen with Stefano Faita and Best Recipes Ever. Reduce investment in daytime programming through use of different production models, acquisitions and repeats

    • • Reduce one original Canadian series on CBC Television and replace with an acquisition (Best of the World)

    • • Integrate English and French revenue groups to generate additional synergies and provide a more streamlined service to advertisers

  • Measures that Radio-Canada will implement to reduce costs:

    • • Elimination of 11 daily morning regional programs on Espace musique (Monday to Friday 8:30 a.m. to 12:00 in 11 communities: Moncton, Rimouski, Québec, Sherbrooke, Trois-Rivières, Saguenay, Ottawa-Gatineau, Toronto/Windsor, Sudbury, Winnipeg/Regina, Vancouver). Replaced with one network program.

    • • Elimination of Au tour du monde on Espace musique (network musical program from Vancouver).

    • • Fewer episodes of our signature radio programs.

    • • Reduction in recordings of live music concerts.

    • • Reduction of two journalists (13 to 11) and one producer (12 to 11) to investigative program, Enquête.

    • • Elimination of one morning network television program Alors on jase!

    • • Replacement of afternoon "nostalgia" series with an American program.

    • • Reduction of one daily regional TV program (Quelle histoire!) from Ottawa-Gatineau (from 90 to 36 episodes).

    • • Reduction of number of episodes for some programs (Qu’est-ce qu’on mange pour souper? and Pour le plaisir reduced to four episodes per week).

    • • End of late night sports news bulletins on television.

    • • Sunday morning Le Jour du Seigneur moves from Ottawa to a church in Quebec City.

    • • Non-replacement of ICI Radio-Canada Première program Par 4 chemins.

    • • Replacement of local, Saturday morning ICI Radio-Canada Première programs in Québec, Eastern Québec and Saguenay with provincial show Samedi et rien d’autre.

    • • Cancellation of radio programs La tête ailleurs and Culture physique.

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