Maryam Monsef

[Telecommunications, November 30th, 2020]

Mr. Speaker, I have positive news for my colleague. As of November 9, there has been a call for applications. It is open. This is the single largest investment in broadband in Canada's history. Our government has put it forward. We are taking a matter of days to review and assess project proposals that come forward, for rapid response. For longer-term projects, there is another $1 billion set aside.

The short answer is yes. I ask the member to reach out to my team and me, and we will do what we can to help.

[Women and Gender Equality, November 30th, 2020]

Mr. Speaker, my colleague from Nickel Belt is absolutely right: Men and boys play a vital role in ending gender-based violence. That is why our government partnered with the Moose Hide Campaign, Next Gen Men, Catalyst Canada and Pauktuutit, to name a few, so that men and boys are working on healthier relationships, have the tools to be more than bystanders online and offline and can be part of the positive change that is so desperately needed.

I know my colleagues here are playing important roles as mentors. They are leading by example. They are opening doors to progress in terms of pathways for employment and career development. We look forward to the day when we do not have to have 16 days of activism against gender-based—

[Telecommunications, November 24th, 2020]

Mr. Speaker, because of our government's investments, tens of thousands of households over the next month will be connected to this essential service, because of the universal broadband fund and everybody who worked so hard to develop the program. Canadians like those in my hon. colleague's community can reach out to us and can figure out which program works best for them. Is it the rapid response stream? Is it the core stream? Whatever supports they need, we are here to support them.

If my colleague wants to reach out to my team, that would be a good first step. We are here to help.

[Telecommunications, November 19th, 2020]

Mr. Speaker, my hon. colleague is absolutely right. Too many Canadians at the moment do not have access to this essential lifeline.

I would encourage him to reach out to my team and I. We will work with him to see if the rapid response stream, the $150 million we set aside for immediate connectivity projects, would be eligible for his community. If that does not work, we can see if the core UBF program of about $1 billion, which includes cellphone access, would work for his community.

Every Canadian deserves access to this essential service. Our government is there for Canadians, and together we can connect every Canadian to the Internet.

[Telecommunications, November 16th, 2020]

Mr. Speaker, women like Chantal have been hit hardest by COVID, and one of the additional responsibilities they bear is supporting their kids with online learning. When that high-speed Internet access is not a reliable one, Chantal's life is that much more difficult.

We have heard her. We are working to address the challenge. Before the universal broadband fund was launched last week, our government had already invested five times more to connect the people of Quebec than the previous government. We know the work is not done, but there is a program there to support Canadians to get connected. I encourage my colleague to work with us to do that.

[Telecommunications, November 16th, 2020]

Mr. Speaker, because of our government's efforts, tens of thousands of households at the end of this year will be connected to this essential service. Because of our government's commitment to rural Canadians, we have put more in investments than all previous governments combined. In fact, our government's support for rural broadband is 10 times higher than all governments that have come before us.

There is an unusual consensus emerging across the country that every Canadian deserves access to this essential service. Our plan is the plan Canadians asked for. It will work. I encourage colleagues to support their communities to put high-quality applications forward.

[Telecommunications, November 16th, 2020]

Mr. Speaker, last week we launched phase 2 of our government's plan to connect every Canadian to high-speed Internet. The universal broadband fund builds on the efforts that we began early on in our first mandate. It is the plan Canadians asked for. It is the plan our rural members of Parliament shaped. It is a plan shaped by experts, and it includes flexibility, backbone, last mile and a rapid response stream.

I want to thank the Prime Minister for his care and support for rural Canada and particularly for appointing the member for Long Range Mountains to colead this file with me. She truly moves mountains.

[Telecommunications, November 6th, 2020]

Mr. Speaker, my colleague is absolutely right. Connectivity is about health and safety, jobs and productivity. It is unfair that millions of households across this big, beautiful country do not have access to this essential service.

We have heard Canadians. We have worked with them to develop a plan that they have asked for, and we will have more to say soon.

[COVID-19 Emergency Response, November 3rd, 2020]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for her advocacy of women. Truly, this pandemic has hit women the hardest. I will say at the same time, with a lot of humility, that no country in the world has done a better job at applying an intersectional gendered analysis to its COVID response than Canada has. We have much to do. The path to recovery depends on women doing well and this is the right government at the right time to get it done.

[Telecommunications, October 29th, 2020]

Mr. Speaker, like my colleague from Sarnia—Lambton, I too care about rural economic development and see high-speed Internet as a vital recovery tool for every Canadian. Whether in Curve Lake First Nation, Douro-Dummer, Trent Lakes, Havelock-Belmont-Methuen, North Kawartha, Selwyn, Peterborough or any corner of this great country, Canadians deserve access to this essential service. Our government has been there for them, including partnerships with SWIFT. There is more to say and I look forward to working with my colleague to that end.