Question Period Note: BROADBAND FUNDING TO PROVINCES AND TERRITORIES

How much broadband funding has been provided to provinces and territories that do not have federal-provincial agreements?

• High-speed Internet access is essential for all Canadians.

• The Universal Broadband Fund will provide $3.225 billion to help reach the national target of providing high-speed Internet access to 98% of Canadians by 2026, and 100% by 2030.

• The Government of Canada has announced significant agreements with Quebec, Ontario, Alberta, British Columbia, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Prince Edward Island to bring high-speed Internet to Canadians.

• For the rest of the country, the government has announced over $33 million from the Universal Broadband Fund to ensure more than 19,000 households have access to high-speed Internet, and more projects will be announced soon.

• Since 2015, the Government of Canada has announced over $3.4 billion in in funding for projects across the country to improve connectivity. Of that funding, over $700 million has been announced for Saskatchewan, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Yukon, Northwest Territories, and Nunavut.

• The government recognizes that close collaboration with other levels of government, the private sector, Indigenous groups and other stakeholders will help achieve the national target of universal access to high-speed Internet by 2030.

• The government is on track to meet the national targets. To date, 93.5 % of Canadian homes have access to high-speed Internet, or are targeted to receive access through existing program commitments.

Universal Broadband Fund Partnerships
Under the Universal Broadband Fund, the Government of Canada has entered into co-funding partnerships with Quebec ($920 million total), Ontario ($1.2 billion), Newfoundland and Labrador ($136 million), Alberta ($780 million), British Columbia ($830 million), and Prince Edward Island ($20 million) to connect 823,000 households. Many provincial governments have their own targets and initiatives to improve connectivity within their respective provinces. Co-funding partnerships allow for more households to be connected with UBF funding, which helps achieve the national connectivity targets faster.

Those without co-funding agreements include: Saskatchewan, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Yukon, Northwest Territories, and Nunavut.