TORONTO: New provisions to the Copyright Act tabled yesterday in the House of Commons undermine creators’ rights, says The Writers’ Union of Canada, which has its annual general meeting in Ottawa this weekend. Copyright is high on the agenda.

“We acknowledge the Government’s efforts to modernize our copyright legislation” said Erna Paris, Chair of the Union. “However we are greatly disappointed that the Government has legislated new uses for consumers without providing appropriate compensation for writers.”

“The Union’s past chairs and I will be meeting with seven members of the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage on Parliament Hill on Friday,” said Paris. “We will make them aware of our serious concerns.”

“We were hoping for greater accessibility of our works through collective societies representing creators. This would have assured fair compensation for authors. Instead, a new provision on education will restrict collective licensing. Another provision will allow a library, which may have purchased a single copy of a book, to scan and send copyright material to every library patron in Canada without payment to the author.”

The Writers' Union of Canada is our country's national organization representing professional authors of books. Founded in 1973, the Union is dedicated to fostering writing in Canada, and promoting the rights, freedoms, and economic well being of all writers. For more information, please visit www.writersunion.ca.

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For additional information
Deborah Windsor, Executive Director
The Writers’ Union of Canada
dwindsor@writersunion.ca