Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to join the debate today on Motion No. 208, which addresses rural digital infrastructure.
As all rural colleagues will know, reliable high-speed Internet is absolutely essential for rural communities, families, farmers and agribusinesses. From general communication to managing supply chains in our businesses to research in our schools to entertainment in our homes, Canadians rely on the Internet no matter where they live.
Unfortunately, there are still too many rural communities, including those in Perth—Wellington, that simply do not have access to high-speed Internet. It is unfortunate, because in the communities in my riding, rural municipalities are working hard to attract new families to fill jobs and rejuvenate the communities, but that cannot be done without reliable high-speed Internet.
Service in the communities in my riding is particularly bad where the major telecoms are the incumbents. Where there are local independent service providers, they are leading the way in terms of rural broadband. They are putting fibre down the country roads. In some areas, the local incumbent has provided fibre high-speed Internet to every single farm and home within its area. That is impressive.
However, to move beyond that into the areas where the major telecoms are the incumbents is impossible and not financially viable, so local ISPs are relying on the government to fund them. Unfortunately, that is not happening. What we have seen with the connect to innovate program has been a complete ignoring of rural communities in Perth—Wellington.
There are at least three projects in my riding that applied for the connect to innovate program in November 2016. Here we are in May of 2019, and what do we hear from the Liberal government? Crickets. There is no response. They applied in November 2016. These are the independent service providers that are leading the way in terms of connecting our rural communities to high-speed Internet, yet here they are, still waiting for an answer one way or the other from the connect to innovate program. That complete and blatant disrespect for rural communities and for these hard-working independent Internet service providers is completely unacceptable.
In fact, I dare say that the speed with which the government is acting on high-speed Internet has been slower than dial-up. That is my staff's one joke for the day.
The government talks a big game when it comes to rural broadband and makes long-term commitments, yet does not actually succeed in acting on this matter. We have to question how much of a priority this is for the government when in the dying days of the government, it decides to introduce a private member's motion directing a committee to undertake a study to look at rural digital infrastructure. The rhetoric does not match the reality of what we hear on the ground.
I want to highlight some of the independent work being done by different communities within my riding, including the SWIFT program, an amazing program that is working with municipalities, independent Internet service providers and the communities to bring rural high speed. It is waiting as well for an answer one way or the other as to whether its projects can go ahead through the SWIFT program.
When it comes to last-mile connectivity, so often the government is not funding it. That last mile is so critical to rural communities like mine in Perth—Wellington.
This is not the first time I have raised these issues in this House. This is at least the third time I have raised the need for reliable high-speed Internet in rural communities like mine in Perth—Wellington.
In fact, just last November, I asked a question of the government during question period related to the Auditor General's report. The response I received at the time from the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development was nothing more than empty promises, so I followed it up with an adjournment debate. At the next opportunity, I once again asked for a response on why the government was failing rural communities when it came to high-speed Internet. Again I received the same empty rhetoric, this time from the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Rural Economic Development.
At the time, I quoted the Auditor General's report, which clearly stated that the AG's office examined the issue and found that Innovation, Science and Economic Development “did not have a strategy in place to improve access for almost 3.7 million Canadians.”
That is still the case. There is no coherent plan in place to get Canadians connected. The government quoted a target, that every Canadian will have access by 2030. However, without a plan to get them there, it is not going to happen. If the government cannot process simple applications over a three-year program, how can anyone believe that it will get Internet service to 3.7 million Canadians within the next 11 years?
It goes back to the motivation of the private member's motion. Again, it is instructing two standing committees to undertake comprehensive studies on this issue. We have 30 sitting days remaining in this Parliament. At most, there are 12 committee meetings left for each of the two committees mentioned in this motion, yet here we are debating this and asking these committees to undertake these comprehensive studies in 30 days and to report back to the House.
I would remind the Liberal member for Pontiac that his party has a majority on every committee in this House. If the Liberals wanted to undertake a study on rural broadband, on rural digital infrastructure, they could have done so at any time over the past three and a half years of this mandate, yet the Liberals have come here, in the dying days of this Parliament, to instruct two committees to undertake meaningful studies and report back by the end of this Parliament. Again, we have 30 sitting days remaining, at most.
I would further point out that the Standing Committee on Industry, Science and Technology tabled a report last April entitled “Broadband Connectivity in Rural Canada: Overcoming the Digital Divide”. I am curious. What is it in that report the member for Pontiac found was not up to snuff so he needed to have another report on the same matter?
Rural Canadians do not need another study. They need action. They need the government to actually process applications and make approvals in programs that are already in place.
I will again reference the report from Auditor General from last fall, which stated:
In its April 2018 report, the House of Commons Standing Committee on Industry, Science and Technology recommended that Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada develop a comprehensive rural broadband strategy in collaboration with key stakeholders, including but not limited to governments at all levels, civil society groups, Internet service providers, First Nations, and non-profit organizations.
It goes on to say, about the federal government’s response to the committee:
The government responded to the Standing Committee’s recommendation of a comprehensive rural broadband strategy. However, the response did not mention a strategy.
The Auditor General criticized the government for not having a strategy. A standing committee recommended that there should be a strategy. Now we have a motion in this House instructing a committee to undertake a study to recommend a strategy for rural Internet.
We wonder why Canadians get frustrated with government, when we see this type of circular thinking from the Liberal government. Canadians are tired of more and more reports telling them what they already know. They know that we lack high-speed rural Internet. They know that action is not happening, and it is not coming from our major telecoms. It is our independent local Internet service providers that are leading the way. Those are the ones we should be supporting. Those are the ones we should be working with. Those are the ones who should be provided with the resources necessary to connect to that last mile of high-speed Internet in rural communities, in my riding of Perth—Wellington and across Canada.
