Eby’s absence at trade briefing exposes gaps in Canada’s communications infrastructure

Eby’s absence at trade briefing exposes gaps in Canada’s communications infrastructure MATTHEW FRANK PUBLISHED 1 HOUR AGO Open this photo in gallery: British Columbia Premier David Eby's office told The Globe last week that he was on vacation with inconsistent cell service during Wednesday’s trade meeting with Prime Minister Mark Carney. JENNIFER GAUTHIER/REUTERS COMMENTS SHARE SAVE FOR LATER Listen to this article Learn more about audio Log in or create a free account to listen to this article. Experts are calling for improved communications channels for Canadian leaders, after B.C. Premier David Eby said he couldn’t attend a vital all-premiers’ meeting about U.S. trade negotiations last week because of poor cellular service. Mr. Eby said last Wednesday’s meeting where Prime Minister Mark Carney briefed premiers on trade talks in Washington was called with short notice and he had “spotty internet and cell service” where he was located, so he sent Deputy Premier Niki Sharma in his place. “I wasn’t able to attend in the way that I wanted to for such an important meeting, and I think she did a good capable job of it in order to receive the update from the Prime Minister,” he said during a Saturday news conference. Canadian and U.S. officials spent days deep in negotiations last week, as Ottawa attempted to reach a trade deal that would avoid U.S. President Donald Trump’s new tariffs on US$20-billion in Canadian goods, and reduce the pain of other sectoral tariffs the White House enacted last year. While Mr. Eby attended a Saturday meeting with Prime Minister Mark Carney and Canada-U.S. Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc after a tentative deal was scrapped the night before, the B.C. Premier noted that three of his fellow premiers missed that update and sent their deputies: New Brunswick, Newfoundland and the Northwest Territories. Opinion: The U.S.’s deal was no deal at all No public reasons have been given for those premiers’ absences and the three provinces didn’t respond to The Globe and Mail’s request for comment. Mr. Eby’s office told The Globe last week that he was on vacation with inconsistent cell service during Wednesday’s meeting with Mr. Carney. Cellular service dead zones have plagued much of Canada and measures to improve the gaps have been slow. The Globe has previously reported that thousands of kilometres of Canadian highways often do not have any signal. Across the country, roughly 15,000 kilometres – or 13.4 per cent – of major…