Heritage minister says she'd like CBC's mandate updated to include strong online presence, fill info gaps

Heritage Minister Pascale St-Onge says she wants the role of public broadcaster CBC/Radio-Canada redefined before the next federal election.

In a year-end interview with The Canadian Press, St-Onge said now is the time to update its mandate, to hedge against a possible change in government.

She said the Liberal government believes a strong public broadcaster strengthens democracy and promises to keep supporting it, adding she believes a Conservative government would destroy it.

The Opposition Tories, who didn't immediately respond to a request for comment, have promised to defund CBC and turn its Toronto-based headquarters into housing.

The federal Liberals have been promising for years to update CBC's mandate to meet the modern needs of Canadians, even as the news industry faces job cuts and declining ad revenue, including recently announced cuts at the public broadcaster.

St-Onge said she would like the new mandate to fill information gaps in local regions, include a strong online presence, invest in international reporting and ensure minority-language communities are supported.