Faster, reliable internet will create jobs and opportunities in rural and remote Ontario
(Watford, ON) – Ontario is delivering on its commitment to create even more economic and educational opportunities in rural, remote and underserved areas of the province through an improved, modern broadband network in Southwestern Ontario. The province announced that Brooke Telecom has been contracted to bring reliable internet to Lambton County.
Parliamentary Assistant Randy Pettapiece, on behalf of Ernie Hardeman, Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, along with Monte McNaughton, MPP for Lambton-Kent-Middlesex and Bob Bailey, MPP for Sarnia-Lambton were in Watford, Ontario today to make the announcement.
The contract, awarded by Southwestern Integrated Fibre Technology (SWIFT), is the latest step in the expansion of broadband internet access in Southwestern Ontario.
Brooke Telecom will implement a fibre-to-the-home project, consisting of 149.5 kilometres of fibre to service 536 premises, just east of Petrolia. The project will invest $5.8 million in broadband infrastructure, including funding from federal, provincial and municipal governments. Construction on the infrastructure is expected to begin in April 2021, with completion by December 2022.
PA Pettapiece and MPP McNaughton also visited Kettle and Stony Point First Nation to announce that internet service provider, Execulink, has begun construction. This jointly-funded project totaling $2.7 million will see 35 kilometres of fibre optic cable installed and will bring broadband service to the First Nation community. Construction is expected to be completed by December 2020. Combined, these two projects are worth up to $8.5 million and will result in 185 kilometres of fibre optic cable being laid, giving broadband access to more than 1,500 homes and businesses in Lambton County.
“In our first mandate, we invested to connect nearly 400,000 households by 2023 through the Connect to Innovate program; more ambitious than any other government,” said the Honourable Maryam Monsef, Minister of Women and Gender Equality and Rural Economic Development. “Work is underway every day and in the next 18 months, we will connect 250,000 of these households. Our plan is working because we are working with our partners at the community level. We are about to open new calls for proposals to connect 100% of Canada’s communities to reliable, quality internet access. Our number one goal over the coming months will be supporting high quality plans and applications from every community who needs better access. Together, with partners like those involved here in Lambton County, we will achieve universal internet access so that geography does not determine any Canadian’s access to this essential service. Congratulations to hardworking local MPs and all involved!”
“For too long connecting rural communities with high-speed internet hasn’t been treated with enough urgency — our government has changed that,” said Monte McNaughton, MPP for Lambton-Kent-Middlesex. “Improving connectivity for homes and businesses is critical for people to participate effectively in this highly competitive global economy.”
“In the past few months we’ve seen how important it is for individuals, families, and businesses to be able to connect online through reliable, high speed internet connections,” said Bob Bailey, MPP for Sarnia-Lambton. “Today’s announcement is another positive step toward the goal of expanding internet access in underserved areas of rural Southwestern Ontario and will help to retain and attract families and businesses to Lambton County.”
“This project will have a very positive impact in additional areas of Lambton County,” said Bill Weber, Lambton County Warden and SWIFT Board Member. “We are pleased to have been able to provide the additional funding to make this project happen in partnership with SWIFT and Brooke Telecom as we move a step closer to closing the connectivity gap in the province.”
“The advancement of this project with the support of many great new relationships, allows Kettle and Stony Point First Nation the opportunity to continue to thrive and grow. The boost in educational and economic impacts from this investment will be felt for years to come.” – Chippewas of Kettle and Stony Point Chief Jason Henry.
The Ontario government recognizes how important rural broadband access is for individuals, families and businesses. Work continues to bridge the gaps in broadband access in Southwestern Ontario, as part of a combined $190 million investment to bring fast, reliable internet to thousands of homes and businesses.
Creating more ways to strengthen rural economies is part of the government’s plan to build Ontario together. Reliable and affordable broadband internet will allow communities to attract new development, strengthen local economies and create more well-paying jobs and opportunities in rural Ontario.
Quick Facts
SWIFT Inc. is a not-for-profit corporation initiated by the Western Ontario Wardens’ Caucus to address connectivity in Southwestern Ontario that will support the critical expansion of broadband to underserved areas.
The Ontario government’s Broadband and Cellular Action Plan is expected to generate up to $1 billion in total investment over five years, resulting in new connections for up to 220,000 homes and businesses. This will lead to community, social and economic benefits well beyond the provincial investment.
The Ontario government will continue to expand access to broadband and cellular service through the Improving Connectivity for Ontario program (ICON). This multi-year program aims to support approved projects as early as 2021.
OTTAWA – Canada’s unemployment rate held steady at 6.5 per cent last month as hiring remained weak across the economy.
Statistics Canada’s labour force survey on Friday said employment rose by a modest 15,000 jobs in October.
Business, building and support services saw the largest gain in employment.
Meanwhile, finance, insurance, real estate, rental and leasing experienced the largest decline.
Many economists see weakness in the job market continuing in the short term, before the Bank of Canada’s interest rate cuts spark a rebound in economic growth next year.
Despite ongoing softness in the labour market, however, strong wage growth has raged on in Canada. Average hourly wages in October grew 4.9 per cent from a year ago, reaching $35.76.
Friday’s report also shed some light on the financial health of households.
According to the agency, 28.8 per cent of Canadians aged 15 or older were living in a household that had difficulty meeting financial needs – like food and housing – in the previous four weeks.
That was down from 33.1 per cent in October 2023 and 35.5 per cent in October 2022, but still above the 20.4 per cent figure recorded in October 2020.
People living in a rented home were more likely to report difficulty meeting financial needs, with nearly four in 10 reporting that was the case.
That compares with just under a quarter of those living in an owned home by a household member.
Immigrants were also more likely to report facing financial strain last month, with about four out of 10 immigrants who landed in the last year doing so.
That compares with about three in 10 more established immigrants and one in four of people born in Canada.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.
The Canadian Institute for Health Information says health-care spending in Canada is projected to reach a new high in 2024.
The annual report released Thursday says total health spending is expected to hit $372 billion, or $9,054 per Canadian.
CIHI’s national analysis predicts expenditures will rise by 5.7 per cent in 2024, compared to 4.5 per cent in 2023 and 1.7 per cent in 2022.
This year’s health spending is estimated to represent 12.4 per cent of Canada’s gross domestic product. Excluding two years of the pandemic, it would be the highest ratio in the country’s history.
While it’s not unusual for health expenditures to outpace economic growth, the report says this could be the case for the next several years due to Canada’s growing population and its aging demographic.
Canada’s per capita spending on health care in 2022 was among the highest in the world, but still less than countries such as the United States and Sweden.
The report notes that the Canadian dental and pharmacare plans could push health-care spending even further as more people who previously couldn’t afford these services start using them.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.
Canadian Press health coverage receives support through a partnership with the Canadian Medical Association. CP is solely responsible for this content.
As Canadians wake up to news that Donald Trump will return to the White House, the president-elect’s protectionist stance is casting a spotlight on what effect his second term will have on Canada-U.S. economic ties.
Some Canadian business leaders have expressed worry over Trump’s promise to introduce a universal 10 per cent tariff on all American imports.
A Canadian Chamber of Commerce report released last month suggested those tariffs would shrink the Canadian economy, resulting in around $30 billion per year in economic costs.
More than 77 per cent of Canadian exports go to the U.S.
Canada’s manufacturing sector faces the biggest risk should Trump push forward on imposing broad tariffs, said Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters president and CEO Dennis Darby. He said the sector is the “most trade-exposed” within Canada.
“It’s in the U.S.’s best interest, it’s in our best interest, but most importantly for consumers across North America, that we’re able to trade goods, materials, ingredients, as we have under the trade agreements,” Darby said in an interview.
“It’s a more complex or complicated outcome than it would have been with the Democrats, but we’ve had to deal with this before and we’re going to do our best to deal with it again.”
American economists have also warned Trump’s plan could cause inflation and possibly a recession, which could have ripple effects in Canada.
It’s consumers who will ultimately feel the burden of any inflationary effect caused by broad tariffs, said Darby.
“A tariff tends to raise costs, and it ultimately raises prices, so that’s something that we have to be prepared for,” he said.
“It could tilt production mandates. A tariff makes goods more expensive, but on the same token, it also will make inputs for the U.S. more expensive.”
A report last month by TD economist Marc Ercolao said research shows a full-scale implementation of Trump’s tariff plan could lead to a near-five per cent reduction in Canadian export volumes to the U.S. by early-2027, relative to current baseline forecasts.
Retaliation by Canada would also increase costs for domestic producers, and push import volumes lower in the process.
“Slowing import activity mitigates some of the negative net trade impact on total GDP enough to avoid a technical recession, but still produces a period of extended stagnation through 2025 and 2026,” Ercolao said.
Since the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement came into effect in 2020, trade between Canada and the U.S. has surged by 46 per cent, according to the Toronto Region Board of Trade.
With that deal is up for review in 2026, Canadian Chamber of Commerce president and CEO Candace Laing said the Canadian government “must collaborate effectively with the Trump administration to preserve and strengthen our bilateral economic partnership.”
“With an impressive $3.6 billion in daily trade, Canada and the United States are each other’s closest international partners. The secure and efficient flow of goods and people across our border … remains essential for the economies of both countries,” she said in a statement.
“By resisting tariffs and trade barriers that will only raise prices and hurt consumers in both countries, Canada and the United States can strengthen resilient cross-border supply chains that enhance our shared economic security.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 6, 2024.
