Question Period Note: CANADA-PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND BROADBAND PARTNERSHIP

What are the details of the Canada-Prince Edward Island broadband partnership announced on June 2, 2022?

• High-speed Internet access is essential for all Canadians. That is why the Government of Canada has made billions of dollars available for rural and remote Internet infrastructure – including $3.225 billion under the Universal Broadband Fund.

• The government is proud to collaborate with Prince Edward Island to invest up to $20 million to provide high-speed Internet access to all underserved households in the province.

• The government is committed to providing access to 98% of Canadians by 2026. This can only be achieved through partnerships with other levels of government, the private sector, Indigenous groups, and other stakeholders.

• The Canada-Prince Edward Island (PEI) broadband partnership announced on June 2, 2022, will provide high-speed Internet access to approximately 2,000 households in Prince Edward Island that do not currently have access to 50/10 Mbps Internet service, and that are not already being provided with access through the two announced Universal Broadband Fund projects in the province. More information about projects funded under this agreement will be announced soon.
• The Government of Canada is working hard with all provinces and territories to ensure that projects are announced across the country in the coming months.

• To date, the Universal Broadband Fund has announced more than $2 billion in funding to provide access to more than 900,000 households and more announcements are coming soon.

The $3.225 billion Universal Broadband Fund (UBF) will help ensure that 98% of Canadians have access to high-speed Internet by 2026, and 100% by 2030. The UBF includes a Rapid Response Stream for shovel-ready projects that can be completed quickly, $50 million for mobile projects that primarily benefit Indigenous peoples, and $750 million for large, high-impact projects.
In addition to Prince Edward Island (PEI), the Government of Canada has announced other federal-provincial broadband partnerships with Ontario, Quebec, Alberta, British Columbia, and Newfoundland and Labrador.
The Government of Canada’s funding of $10 million for the Canada-PEI broadband partnership comes from the Universal Broadband Fund, and $10 million comes from PEI.
Under the Rapid Response Stream (RRS) of the UBF, $693,000 in UBF funding has been announced to provide more than 200 households in PEI with improved Internet access.
Across all Government of Canada broadband programs since 2015, over $46 million in funding has been announced for connectivity projects in PEI.