High speed Internet for rural Canadians is a priority for the federal government and was one of the main topics of discussion when she met recently with Clearwater town council, according to M.P. Cathy McLeod.
“Step one has to be having a map that shows the reality of the community and that shows the gaps so that government can be in a better position to focus its resources,” she said.
A map that does not show the reality might indicate that a certain area has Internet access when, in fact, the people who live in that area think their access is not functional, the Kamloops-Thompson-Cariboo member of parliament said.
In a letter to town council, McLeod pointed out that Connecting Canadians, a new federal program, will bring high speed Internet to 280,000 households that do not currently have Internet access or have slower access.
The federal government plans to spend $305 million to extend access to broadband Internet at 5 megabits per second (Mbps) to 98 per cent of Canadian households.
Municipal governments, residents and internet service providers (ISPs) are invited to visit the Connecting Canadians website (www.ic.gc.ca/ConnectingCanadians) to offer input on communities whose Internet service does not meet the 5 Mbps threshold and could be eligible for funding through the program.
The first projects are expected to be announced in the spring of 2015.
