Top row, Left to Right:
Arnold Stoll, President, Avetria
Terry Sheehan, MP Sault Ste. Marie, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Economic Development (FedNor)
Brian McCullagh, Director of Business Development - Business Solutions, Vianet
Ryan Turnbull, MP Whitby
Row 2, Left to right:
Maggie Papoulias, Director of Government Affairs, Bell Canada
Tony Van Bynen, MP New Market-Aurora
Tim Louis, MP Kitchener-Conestoga
Bryan May, MP Cambridge
Row 3, Left to Right:
Marc Serré, MP Nickel Belt
Jennifer O’Connell, MP Pickering-Uxbridge, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Health
The Honourable Maryam Monsef, Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Rural Economic Development
Adam van Koeverden, MP Milton
Bottom Centre:
Neil Ellis, MP Bay of Quinte
Office of Terry Sheehan
Member of Parliament for Sault Ste. Marie
Government of Canada invests nearly $16 million to bring high-speed Internet to homes in rural Ontario
Prince Township & Area to benefit from increased connectivity
News Release
For Immediate Release
June 25, 2021 –Sault Ste. Marie, 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 continue to work, learn, access essential services, and stay 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 Rapid Response Stream of the Universal Broadband Fund (UBF), the Government of Canada is taking immediate action to get Canadians connected to the high-speed Internet they need.
Today, the Honourable Maryam Monsef, Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Rural Economic Development, joined by Terry Sheehan, Member of Parliament for Sault Ste. Marie, announced nearly $16 million in federal funding through the Rapid Response Stream of the UBF for 27 projects to bring high-speed Internet to 7,511 underserved households in 49 communities across rural Ontario.
Prince Township & Area (Carpin Beach, Gros Cap, Pointe Louise) will benefit from a $157,635 contribution from the Government of Canada, for LeepFrog Telecom to improve the broadband connectivity to 403 households in the region of Prince Township, using fixed wireless last mile and fibre core network technologies, for a total project cost of $210,730.
The $2.75 billion Universal Broadband Fund was launched in November 2020. 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 Ontario. Since 2015, the federal government has invested more than $2.85 billion in over 4,060 infrastructure projects in Ontario communities with a population of fewer than 100,000 people. These investments mean 452 km of new or upgraded roads that are making our communities safer; more than 938 projects to provide residents with cleaner, more sustainable sources of drinking water; and more than 5,427 additional housing units built in rural communities, helping ensure all Ontarians have a safe place to call home.
Quotes
“On behalf of Prince Township, I want to thank Terry Sheehan for the great work he has done advocating on behalf of Prince Township to get this funding approved. I look forward to the work starting for this project and to be rapidly completed.”
- Mayor Ken Lamming, Prince Township
“I would like to thank Mayor Lamming for the kind words, it has been a pleasure working for the Mayor and Council. High-speed Internet service is essential to the success of everyone living and working in our communities across Northern Ontario and the riding of Sault Ste. Marie.
These connections allow us to innovate. They bring the world to our classrooms and, during the COVID-19 pandemic, created classrooms for students in their own homes. High Speed internet access allows people to work from home, provides small businesses with the opportunity to serve the world, creates jobs, improves access to health care and online learning services, and keeps people connected to their loved ones.
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.”
-Terry Sheehan, Member of Parliament, Sault Ste. Marie and Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Economic Development (FedNor)
Quick facts
- 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.
- The Universal Broadband Fund (UBF) is a $2.75-billion investment designed to help connect all Canadians to high-speed Internet. Applications to the UBF were accepted until March 15, 2021, and are now being evaluated.
- 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.
- The Government of Canada has committed $1.829 billion to broadband projects from coast-to-coast-to-coast, that will connect over 920,000 homes to high-speed internet.
Associated links
- Backgrounder: Universal Broadband Fund and Telesat low Earth orbit satellite capacity agreement
- Universal Broadband Fund
- Connect to Innovate Program – Project status updates
- Canada Infrastructure Bank announcement
- High-Speed Access for All: Canada’s Connectivity Strategy
Contacts
Marie-Pier Baril
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Rural Economic Development
613-295-8123
Media Relations
Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada
343-291-1777
Jennifer MacNab
Call: 613-406-1280
Email: [email protected]
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