Source : Globe & Mail

This was somewhat unexpected, but in the art world, people already miss Sheila Copps. In Quebec, Ms. Copps was occasionally ridiculed for her girl-scout approach to Canadian nationalism (remember Sheila's flags?), but she loved the arts and she embraced her job with gusto. Eventually, even the Quebec sovereigntists who dominate the francophone arts scene came to admit that she was a fine minister.

Her successor as Heritage Minister, Hélène Scherrer, is undoubtedly an energetic person, too; so much so that she was the first Liberal MP to plunge the knife into Mr. Chrétien's back and publicly call for his resignation -- which precisely seems to be the main reason why she was chosen to be part of Paul Martin's cabinet.

It may be too soon to judge, but Ms. Scherrer has had a disappointing start. A reporter asked her what was her favourite cultural activity. "Sports," she replied bluntly. This might mean that she will be an excellent minister for amateur sports (which comes under the Department of Canadian Heritage) but it did nothing to reassure the arts industry, which craves attention and tender loving care as much as it does money.

Before running for the Liberal Party in the riding of Louis-Hébert, Ms. Scherrer worked briefly as a social worker and later was involved in city politics in the middle-class Quebec suburb of Sillery. Her nomination to the sensitive heritage department surprised everyone, because it was widely assumed that Liza Frulla, who's had a stellar career as a provincial minister for culture, was the obvious choice. Another possibility was John Godfrey, a well-read MP already familiar with cultural issues.

Last week, Sheila Copps was especially missed in Paris, as guests at the Canadian Forum on Cultural Enterprise were faced with the empty chair of the Canadian heritage minister. The forum was a Canadian initiative aimed at fostering cultural diversity and increasing Canadian cultural exports outside the United States, which now buys 94 per cent of all of our cultural products.

Ms. Copps, a strong proponent of cultural diversity, was the driving force behind the forum, which was attended by as many as 600 guests representing various cultural enterprises from Canada, Europe and Africa. Even though the forum was a Canadian initiative paid for by Canada, the Heritage Minister, who was supposed to co-chair the event with France's Minister of Culture, was nowhere to be seen. Ms. Scherrer, according to an aide, was too busy studying her new files. She sent an assistant-deputy minister to represent Canada. French Culture Minister Jean-Jacques Aillagon, left with no political counterpart, had to cancel his presence too. The absence of the ministers deprived the event of a great deal of clout.

Until now, there's been little indication that Mr. Martin and his cohort of long-time handlers are sensitive to cultural matters, especially those with a link to the francophone world. Maybe the real reason for Ms. Scherrer's no-show is that anything having to do with Paris is seen, in some small-minded Ottawa circles, as futile.

As if a working trip to Paris were just an excuse for great dining and shopping. As if there were no business to do in France, a country of 66 million consumers with a historical and linguistic connection with Canada. As if France, which is the most forceful advocate of a strong Europe as a counterbalancing force to the United States, were not the best ally of the Canadian nationalists.

These are issues that Sheila Copps, for one, understood -- and that the Martin cabinet has yet to learn.

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