Telecommunications Act (S.C. 1993, c. 38)

Marginal note:Objectives

7 It is hereby affirmed that telecommunications performs an essential role in the maintenance of Canada’s identity and sovereignty and that the Canadian telecommunications policy has as its objectives

• (a) to facilitate the orderly development throughout Canada of a telecommunications system that serves to safeguard, enrich and strengthen the social and economic fabric of Canada and its regions;

• (b) to render reliable and affordable telecommunications services of high quality accessible to Canadians in both urban and rural areas in all regions of Canada;

• (c) to enhance the efficiency and competitiveness, at the national and international levels, of Canadian telecommunications;

• (d) to promote the ownership and control of Canadian carriers by Canadians;

• (e) to promote the use of Canadian transmission facilities for telecommunications within Canada and between Canada and points outside Canada;

• (f) to foster increased reliance on market forces for the provision of telecommunications services and to ensure that regulation, where required, is efficient and effective;

• (g) to stimulate research and development in Canada in the field of telecommunications and to encourage innovation in the provision of telecommunications services;

• (h) to respond to the economic and social requirements of users of telecommunications services; and

• (i) to contribute to the protection of the privacy of persons.