A major Quebec media company is at risk of becoming a squatter in the province’s legislature district.
Quebec’s legislature, known as the National Assembly, charges media outlets at an annual rate of $269.86 per square metre of office space they occupy — a “prohibitive” sum, according to Canadian Association of Journalists president Brent Jolly. In response to the struggles of news companies, Québecor is calling on the National Assembly to support local media by providing free office space for journalists covering politics.
Political reporters in New Brunswick’s capital don’t have dedicated offices in the Legislative Assembly building, but the press gallery, whose members pay a $100 annual fee, has a space with desks in a neighbouring building. Jolly says he agrees that legislative press offices should be more affordable for media given the public benefit journalists provide with their political news coverage.