Canada Council pushes back opening of online application portal to June 5

One of the features of the new Canada Council funding model was a sophisticated online application system, but things aren't working out as the council and applicants expected. The Council has had to push back the opening of the online portal from this week to June 5 because of what are called "technical issues". 

For many small arts groups, such as literary and cultural magazines, there is always pressure to meet deadlines and to receive funding they have counted on and budgeted for. This is on top of getting used to the new categories under which they could apply. And many of them fear that it may mean, at best, delayed payment.

"It was a difficult decision to make, but we could not take the risk that these issues would become a burden," Simon Brault, the chief executive of the Council told CBC News in an email. "We will have to re-adjust many internal processes in order to be able to accept applications from alternate means on an interim basis." 

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