Broadband Subcommittee to Pave the Way to a More Digitally Connected Province

(Toronto – December 21, 2022) – Today, the Ontario Chamber of Commerce (OCC) released the following statement to announce the launch of its Broadband Subcommittee, a subset of its Infrastructure Policy Council:

“In an increasingly digital economy, access to high-speed internet is a precondition for success. We saw evidence of this at the height of the pandemic when many businesses moved online for everything from e-commerce to remote work, and services such as education and healthcare were delivered virtually,” said Rocco Rossi, President and CEO of the OCC. “Broadband is critical to unserved and underserved areas as it supports entry into new markets, increases online sales, reduces costs, and supports the delivery of important services.”

Despite sizable investments from the private sector and governments, recent estimates suggest that up to 700,000 businesses and households across Ontario cannot access high-speed internet services of 50/10 megabits per second.

Over the coming months, members of the OCC’s Broadband Subcommittee will convene to develop policy recommendations to support the provincial government’s commitment to bring high-speed connectivity to all regions of Ontario by the end of 2025. The subcommittee will focus on outstanding barriers and gaps that could affect the seamless and efficient delivery of these broadband expansion projects.

“Smart spending and regulation on broadband expansion will have an immediate benefit to our economy and our communities, bolstering Ontario’s business competitiveness on a global scale. We thank our members for their continued action on this file and look forward to working together to connect Ontario,” said Ester Gerassime, Economic Analyst and Chair of the Infrastructure Policy Council.

For more details on the OCC’s advocacy related to this topic, see our 2022 Federal Budget Submission, 2022 Provincial Budget Submission, Vote Prosperity, and Broken Links: Driving Technology Adoption within Ontario’s Small Businesses.

-30-

About the Ontario Chamber of Commerce
The Ontario Chamber of Commerce (OCC) is the indispensable partner of business and Canada’s largest, most influential provincial chamber. It is an independent, not-for-profit advocacy and member services organization representing a diverse network of 60,000 members. The OCC’s mission is to convene, align and advance the interests of its members through principled policy work, value-added business services and broad engagement to drive competitiveness and economic growth in the province.

For more information, please contact:
Andrea Carmona
Manager, Public Affairs
andreacarmona@occ.ca| Mobile: (647) 234-0255

Background:

• The Government of Ontario is investing nearly $4 billion to help connect Ontarians to high-speed internet by the end of 2025.
• The Province passed the Getting Ontario Connected Act, 2022, to remove barriers, duplication and delays to make it easier and faster to build broadband infrastructure.
• Through the Universal Broadband Fund, the Government of Canada is investing $3.225 billion to help connect 98% of Canadians to high-speed internet by 2026 and 100% of Canadians by 2030.
• To date, the Government of Canada has invested $7.6 billion in broadband infrastructure to connect communities across the country.