High-speed Internet for Canadians | Building a satellite network could have been less expensive, according to the Conservatives

(Ottawa) Canadian politicians are debating whether American billionaire Elon Musk poses a national security risk following a $2 billion federal government loan to a telecommunications satellite operator.

According to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s office, the money is to help Telesat complete and operate the Lightspeed satellite network, which would improve internet services in the country.

The Liberal government has promised to connect all Canadian households to high-speed internet by 2030.

Conservatives believe the bill is too high. MP Michael Barrett even asked Mr. Musk directly how much Canadians would have had to pay to get this service from Starlink, a company owned by the American billionaire.

“Less than half of that amount [de 2 milliards] “, Mr. Musk quickly replied.

“It seems to me to be a common sense solution for Canadians,” Barrett concluded.

Telesat President and CEO Dan Goldberg laments the misunderstanding surrounding the financial assistance. He points out that it is a loan, not a grant. The company will still have to pay interest at 9%. It has also given warrants for 10% of the common shares of Telesat LEO, a subsidiary that is the beneficiary of the loan, to the government.

The Quebec government is also involved since it granted a loan of 400 million to the project.

“No one asked Elon if he wanted a $2 billion loan from the Canadian government at 9% interest and give away 10% of Starlink?” Mr. Goldberg says. “His answer would have been different.”

After Mr Barrett’s intervention, Innovation Minister François-Philippe Champagne also entered the fray to accuse the Conservatives of wanting to sell out national security.

“The Conservatives would rather give money to foreign billionaires than support our industry and our workers,” he wrote on X. “This loan will help build a world-class satellite network and support thousands of jobs in Quebec.”

In a statement, the Conservatives maintained that Starlink would have been a safer bet. The party’s innovation critic, Rick Perkins, pointed out that there was a platform already available that could provide high-speed internet services now “without lining the pockets of Liberal friends.”

The Conservatives are also trying to tie the loan to former Bank of Canada Governor Mark Carney, who was recently appointed to head the Liberal Party’s Task Force on Economic Growth.

Deputy leader Melissa Lantsman told the House of Commons that the Telesat CEO, one of Mr Carney’s “good friends”, had secured more than $2 billion in taxpayer funds to build a broadband network that other companies could have built for half the price.

Mr Goldeberg confirmed that Mr Carney was a friend of his, but he had no connection to the loan.

National Defense

In announcing the loan, the Prime Minister’s Office stressed that Telesat would help support the modernization of NATO and NORAD.

Elon Musk has become a controversial figure in the political arena in recent years, especially since he purchased Twitter and renamed it X. He often uses the social network to spread fake news.

For example, last week he reported on a fake news story about explosives being found near a rally by Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump. He also argued that the United States would become a tyranny if the former president were not elected and questioned why no one had yet tried to assassinate Joe Biden or Kamala Harris.

Mr. Goldberg suggests that there are good reasons why this contract was awarded to a Canadian company.

“Space is a very strategic sector. There is a lot of investment in it. If we look at what is happening, governments are routinely entering into partnership agreements with domestic operators.”

Adam Lajeunesse, an associate professor at St. Francis Xavier University, says the government has legitimate reasons to prefer a Canadian company when it comes to national security and Arctic defence.

While he has no doubts about Starlink’s ability to meet the needs of the Canadian Armed Forces today, it is important to consider what the company’s fate could be in the coming decades.

“Strategic communications are simply vital to defence activities in the North, not to mention civilian activities. It is dangerous to have a single supplier, especially one that is outside the control of the government,” he says.

James Ferguson, a researcher at the University of Manitoba’s Centre for Security and Defence Studies, agrees that Musk is a Trump supporter who is often opposed to current U.S. foreign policy.

However, he notes that the Pentagon had signed contracts with SpaceX, another company owned by Mr Musk.

“For Americans, it is not a security problem.”