Back to Parliament: your (pandemic) preview

Given the precarious situation around the now-escalating COVID-19 pandemic, what will actually be included in Wednesday’s speech from the throne, and in the government’s priorities in the following weeks, is more uncertain than ever. With a day to go, even the details of exactly what a hybrid and virtual sitting will look like are still unclear. In the days leading up to Parliament’s Sept. 23 return, the focus has turned from priorities like an expanded social safety net and the environment to the resurgent pandemic, especially as two opposition leaders announced they had tested positive for COVID-19 amidst a second wave that has hit various regions of the country. How that will affect priorities like Broadcasting Act reform and rural broadband — which ministers have been promising action on since before Parliament was prorogued in August — will be apparent on Wednesday afternoon. There will likely be further details in updated ministerial mandate letters, which Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has indicated would be released in the coming weeks. Rural broadband The federal government’s release of the $1 billion Universal Broadband Fund is now months overdue. Innovation, Science and Economic Development initially aimed to open the fund for applications in the spring. After the pandemic hit and Canadians moved to work and study from home en masse, the need for connectivity across the country became more apparent and pressure to speed up rural broadband buildouts increased. Rural Economic Development Minister Maryam Monsef initially promised to accelerate the government’s response in late April in an interview with The Wire Report; she then told an industry conference in early June the Universal Broadband Fund would open for applications in the “coming days.” But in the months since, there have been no further updates from the federal government, and the UBF has yet to open for applications. New rules for online giants Heritage Minister Steven Guilbeault first spoke in June about his plans to update the Broadcasting Act with a new framework for foreign digital companies, including to introduce legislation requiring companies like Alphabet Inc. and Facebook Inc. to compensate news organizations. He has since doubled down on those plans. That legislation won’t implement all the recommendations of the Broadcasting and Telecommunications Legislative Review report, and the Liberals have given no indication of when they will tackle the Telecommunication Act or a full update of the Broadcasting Act. Internet, wireless prices The government isn’t expected to introduce any measures targeting telecom service prices, but Parliament’s return may provide some clarity on where the Liberals now stand on the issue. After campaigning in the last federal election to lower wireless prices by 25 per cent, Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains outlined in early March a plan to target 2 GB to 6 GB post-paid plans from the wireless incumbents, and to monitor their progress on those promises over the next two years. But on broadband pricing, the Liberals recently took a different tack. Though the federal cabinet declined to overturn a CRTC decision to lower wholesale rates, Bains issued a statement in August siding with the incumbents in their arguments that the rates are so low as to harm investment. Committees When Parliament comes back, work will resume on a number of Parliamentary committee studies on telecom-related issues that were paused with prorogation. The House industry committee had been working on a report about how to deal with the threat of fraud and scam calls. It was also set to study the accessibility and affordability of telecommunications services in Canada, but hadn’t yet called witnesses. The committee had also been working in recent months on assessing the response to the pandemic, including its impact on fraud, the response by telecom companies, and the government agencies that regulate them. At the House ethics committee, MPs had been due to begin a review of facial recognition technology, but had yet to hold any meetings on the topic. Election Of course, there is always the chance the minority Liberal government loses a confidence vote and Canadians are plunged into an election in the midst of the pandemic. The Conservative Party stance on many telecom and media issues is still to be determined; while previous industry critic Michelle Rempel Garner was vocal on a number of key telecom and internet-related issues, including wholesale rates and rural broadband, the Official Opposition now have a new leader, and brand-new critics on all key telecom and media related files. Following his victory as Conservative leader, Erin O’Toole has repeated his predecessor’s stance in favour of a ban on equipment from Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. in Canada’s 5G networks. But whether he’ll mellow on a previous promise to completely end funding for CBC Digital and cut funding for CBC/Radio-Canada English-language television by 50 per cent is one of the questions The Wire Report will be following closely this fall. — Reporting by Anja Karadeglija at akarad@thewirereport.ca and editing by Michael Lee-Murphy at mleemurphy@thewirereport.ca

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Back to Parliament: your (pandemic) preview

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