April 15, 2021 - Ottawa, Ontario
The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted how much we rely on our connections. Now more than ever, Canadians across the country need access to reliable high-speed Internet as many of us are working, learning, and staying in touch with friends and family from home. Right now, too many Canadians living in rural and remote communities lack access to high-speed Internet. Through the Universal Broadband Fund (UBF) Rapid Response Stream, the Government of Canada is taking immediate action to get Canadians connected to the high-speed Internet they need.
Today, Ken McDonald, Member of Parliament for Avalon, on behalf of the Honourable Maryam Monsef, Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Rural Economic Development, announced $233,000 in federal funding for Bell Canada to bring high-speed Internet to more rural residents of the Avalon Peninsula. Bell Canada will contribute $142,500 toward this project that will connect 335 underserved households in Tors Cove and Mobile to high-speed Internet.
The project being announced today was approved within six months of the November 2020 formal launch of the $1.75-billion Universal Broadband Fund. Projects funded under the UBF, as well as through other public and private investments, will help connect 98% of Canadians to high-speed Internet by 2026 and achieve the national target of 100% connectivity by 2030.
Today's announcement builds on the progress the Government of Canada has already made to improve critical infrastructure in Newfoundland and Labrador. Since 2015, the federal government has invested more than $428 million in over 662 infrastructure projects in Newfoundland and Labrador communities with a population of fewer than 100,000 people. These investments mean 612 km of new or upgraded roads that are making our communities safer; more than 97 projects to provide residents with cleaner, more sustainable sources of drinking water; and more than 28 additional housing units built in rural communities, helping ensure all Newfoundlanders and Labradorians have a safe place to call home.
Quotes
"High-speed Internet service is essential to the success of everyone living and working in our communities across Newfoundland and Labrador. Today's investment will bring reliable high-speed Internet access to 335 more households in Tors Cove and Mobile, helping create jobs, improving access to health care and online learning services, and keeping people connected to their loved ones. Congratulations to Bell Canada and our municipal partners on this fantastic partnership through the Rapid Response Stream of our government's Universal Broadband Fund. I look forward to seeing the positive impact this project will have right here in Avalon."
- Ken McDonald, Member of Parliament for Avalon
"Access to high-speed broadband networks will be a driver of Canada's recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic and of future social and economic prosperity, and Bell has committed to further accelerating our industry-leading capital investment plan over the next two years to connect even more communities across the country. We're proud to invest more than $142,000 and to partner with the Government of Canada in providing residents of Tors Cove and Mobile with access to the fastest fibre home Internet speeds available."
- Glen LeBlanc, Chief Financial Officer and Vice Chair for Atlantic Canada, Bell Canada
Quick facts
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Canada's Connectivity Strategy aims to provide all Canadians with access to Internet speeds of at least 50 megabits per second (Mbps) download / 10 Mbps upload.
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Canada's Connectivity Strategy aims to provide all Canadians with access to Internet speeds of at least 50 megabits per second (Mbps) download / 10 Mbps upload.
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The UBF is part of a suite of federal investments to improve high-speed Internet. The suite includes the Connect to Innovate program, which is expected to connect nearly 400,000 households by 2023, and the recently announced $2-billion broadband initiative from the Canada Infrastructure Bank.
