Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you to our witnesses. This is great testimony.
I do apologize. I had to do some new business today.
Mr. Chair, Canadians are paying the highest cellphone bills in the whole world. I don't think that's news to a lot of people around here, but we did have testimony from the minister not too long ago, and from the CEO of Rogers, who said those prices would go down. What we've seen in the last two weeks through the news is that Rogers has indicated that they're going to increase their prices.
Stats Canada had some data out in the last couple of weeks. When we look at the numbers, we see that the average cellphone bill in Canada is $106 a month. We can compare that to Australia. Australians are paying only $30 a month. The increase is indicative of about an 8.5% increase, or nine dollars per bill. With these increases, we're going to see that discrepancy be about four times.... We're going to see an average cellphone bill of $115 per individual in Canada, and it's only $30 in the U.S. That's almost four times as much. I use Australia because Australia has the same large geography as us but a lower population—at least, it used to have.
When we look at what really needs to happen on this, I know that this committee has been adamant on focusing on cellphone prices, because we've had the Rogers CEO and other CEOs here to talk about it. The minister has been in the House saying that he wants lower cellphone bills.
He's also said that through this deal with the Rogers takeover of Shaw the cellphone bills would go down. As I indicated, this is just not the case, so I have a notice of motion. I'm effectively asking for this committee to condemn the price increases by this oligopoly, which is strangling Canadians, and to then, as soon as possible, have the CEO from Rogers and the minister here before committee so he can answer Canadians as to why prices continue to go up.
Mr. Chair, I'll read the notice of motion into the record. I move that:
Given the CEO of Rogers stated that the Rogers takeover of Shaw will result in lower prices, a claim repeated by the Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, and that Rogers has increased cell phone prices this year, the committee call on the following witnesses to appear before the committee:
a) Tony Staffieri, President and CEO of Rogers;
b) Honourable François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry;
c) The Competition Bureau of Canada
And that these witnesses appear within two weeks of the motion being adopted.