ISED Minister Bains given heavy load of digital, telecom-related tasks in mandate letter

By Christopher Guly OTTAWA-The federal Liberals campaigned on reducing cellphone and wireless service bills by 25% and reiterated that commitment in the government’s throne speech. The man to ensure that happens is Innovation, Science and Industry Minister Navdeep Bains, whose ministerial mandate letter, publicly released last Friday, instructs him to “use all available instruments, including the advancement of the 2019 Telecom Policy Directive” issued to the CRTC to advance that price-reduction objective, working with telcos and mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) in the marketplace. If the cost target is not achieved within two years, the minister “can expand MVNO rules”...