MONTREAL — Nearly three weeks into the federal election campaign, the head of Quebec’s largest actors’ union has made a rare appeal — he’s calling for the need to protect pan-Canadian culture.

In a province where labor leaders tend to have close ties to the Parti Quebecois and Bloc Quebecois, Union des artistes head Raymond Legault’s reach beyond Quebec’s borders is surprising and speaks to the artistic community’s fear of a Conservative majority.

‘This is about identity, but not just Quebec’s identity — it’s also about Canada’s. Identity and culture are a source of pride,’ said the union leader at a press conference in downtown Montreal Wednesday.

‘Living without culture and the arts would be a catastrophe. And it’s not a luxury — it’s an industry,’ said Legault, whose union represents roughly 11,000 people.

The union leader drew on a recent Conference Board of Canada estimate that Canada’s culture sector pumped $84.6 billion into the economy and employed 1.1 million people in 2007.

While the Conservatives says they are spending 8% more on culture this fiscal year than last, a UDA analysis of the Heritage department’s budget concludes that the government’s investment in culture will drop by 7.7 % this year. The UDA came up with a smaller number because it looked exclusively at arts and culture funding and didn’t include spending on sports and language schools, which also fall under the Heritage department’s budget.

Actors also gathered in Toronto on Wednesday as ACTRA staged a similar event, taking aim at Prime Minister Stephen Harper over his remarks against ‘ivory tower’ intellectuals and taxpayer-funded galas. ACTRA also tabled an economic argument for support of the arts.

Legault also released a plan to provide sustained funding for arts and culture in Canada: for every dollar spent in the federal budget, one cent should go to culture. ‘This is very simple and a very realistic plan. It’s about a vision of society that includes culture,’ says Legault.

The UDA’s proposal drew support from the representatives of the three federal political parties who attended the press conference: Liberal culture critic Denis Coderre (Bourassa), the NDP candidate for Westmount-Ville-Marie Anne Lagace-Dowson, and the Bloc MP for Papineau Vivan Barbot. A representative of the Conservative party was invited but didn’t attend.

‘I think it’s definitely worth studying further,’ Lagace-Dowson told Playback Daily. ‘Of course we don’t advocate anything that would create a deficit or get us into debt, but we believe in creating green, sustainable jobs, and culture definitely falls into that category.’

While some Quebec culture types are contemplating voting strategically — which essentially means supporting the Liberals instead of the Bloc Quebecois — Legault, wouldn’t throw his support behind a single political party. ‘I’m not telling anyone how to vote. My political party is arts and culture.’

Since the Quebec artistic community began protesting funding cuts to the arts in August, it has been criticized both by the general public and by Conservative politicians for complaining too much. After a number of performers spoke out at the French-language televised awards show Les Gemeaux in early September, Quebec City Conservative candidate Myriam Taschereau called artists spoiled children. And if blogs, letters-to-the-editor and call-in shows are any indication, many Quebecers appear to agree with her, a fact that surprises Legault.

‘The backlash is difficult to understand, because normally Quebecers listen to and support creators. But I think that’s why it’s important to focus on what the arts contributes to the community,’ he says.

The APFTQ, Quebec’s independent producers association, released a statement Wednesday demanding that the Conservative Party detail how they will support the Canadian film and television industry.