The Policy Foundations of Public Lending Right in Canada

This paper addresses the policy foundations of Canada’s Public Lending Right (PLR) program, with the intent of providing a clear perspective on why and how it came into existence in 1986. An integral part of the paper is “A PLR Chronology, 1946-87,” providing a timeline for developments in the long process that led to the program.

It is necessary to appreciate the historical context for the federal government’s adoption of PLR. This includes the international context, in which 12 other nations adopted some form of PLR before Canada; and the domestic context, in which a vigorous public debate about PLR continued over many years preceding 1986.