National Post (National Edition)
Trudeau taps rookie MP for ‘rural ministry’
Focus on better internet access, employment
A rookie MP from the south shore of Nova Scotia will be tasked with bringing jobs and broadband internet service to rural communities in Canada as part of a new ministry created by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Monday.
In the wake of a cabinet shuffle brought about by the resignation of former Treasury Board president Scott Brison, Bernadette Jordan will lead a brand new Rural Economic Development department.
At a press conference following the swearing-in ceremony, Trudeau said he expects the new ministry to “play a major role in the lives of rural Canadians and their families.” Jordan represents one of the largest ridings in Canada, which stretches from Nova Scotia’s southern tip all the way to the western boundary of Halifax.
Both Trudeau and Jordan emphasized broadband connectivity and, as a federal election in 2019 looms, the government is working toward some lofty goals on rural broadband.
In the fall, the CRTC announced a $750-million fund for rural broadband with the objective of ensuring 90 per cent of Canadians can access speeds of 50 Mbps and unlimited data allowance, as well as employ the “latest mobile wireless technology available ... along major Canadian roads.”
Jordan said the troubles with connectivity are a dayto-day headache for rural residents.
“I know I’ve seen in my riding some of the things that have been challenging ... with the lack of strong broadband and internet,” Jordan said. “We want to make sure as a government that Canadians can work and live wherever they want and that includes rural Canada.”
The creation of the new ministry received good reviews from municipal organizations, including the Federation of Canadian Municipalities.
In a tweet on Monday, the organization said it hoped the new minister would help them work toward “universal broadband” in Canada.
Of all the issues facing the new ministry right now, “rural broadband would certainly be up there,” said Mike Moffatt, an economist and senior director of policy and innovation at the Smart Prosperity Institute.
Farmers have seen an ever-increasing lineup of technological innovations available to them, from soil sensors to various GPS gadgets, but it all relies on connectivity.
“You can already connect to the internet from rural areas. But can you get the speeds necessary to use these technologies?” said Moffatt.
A decade ago, the conversation revolved around getting the internet — any internet — to rural homes, but it’s not so much about connectivity now as speed.
IT’S STILL NOT CHEAP. CANADA IS A BIG COUNTRY.
“It’s still not cheap. Canada is a big country,” said Moffatt. But with new 5G technology on the horizon, it could lower the costs of bringing high-speed technology to rural areas, he said.
The new technology mostly involves constructing towers for the wireless signal, rather than the complicated and expensive task of running wires.
And while broadband may be an economic issue, it’s also a quality of life one, too, especially as Canadians continue to flock to cities.
“These areas are struggling to keep young people. If you can’t get Netflix, absolutely that becomes a quality-of-life issue,” he said.
The move also has obvious electoral implications for the Liberals. In the 2015 election, the party won every seat in Atlantic Canada, many of which are rural. According to an analysis by Maclean’s magazine, the Liberals won one-third of the rural seats in Canada, with 24 of those seats coming in Atlantic Canada.
At the short press conference after the swearing-in ceremony, Jordan deflected questions about the electoral reasons for her appointment. But with Brison choosing not to run again in the Kings-hants riding on the northwest coast of the province after a 20-year career in politics, the Liberals will be looking to fill some big shoes in Nova Scotia.