Earlier this week, I wrote a piece talking about the urgency of significant changes to government policy needed to drive an increase in telecom capital investment in Canada.
I quoted Monday’s report from National Bank Financial that warned “regulators have been over-zealous in their adversarial approach to pressuring carriers on pricing strategies, wholesale access, and administration fees. This has triggered a reaction by carriers which have accelerated headcount reduction, rethought capital allocation priorities, and reduced spending on their networks.”
The CRTC has updated its Communications Market Report data to include information collected through the first quarter of 2026, confirming what carriers have warned as I discussed in “CRTC’s regulatory hypothesis is failing” (May 12, 2026) and “Promoting investment” (April 14, 2026).
Wireless Capex in 1Q26 was $510.85M, down more than 35% from the $800.80M two years earlier and less than half the Capex level in 2Q24 ($1,114.60M). Wireline Capex was $1.78B in 1Q26, down 25% from 1Q24. For months, we have heard calls for regulatory reform in order to encourage private sector capital investment. Four months ago, a Globe and Mail editorial called for “Ottawa to remove the obstacles that currently deter companies from investing in this country.”
Six months ago, CRTC Telecom Vice-chair Adam Scott spoke at an event hosted by Scotiabank. CRTC data was already showing a decline in telecom capital investment as I wrote at that time. Vice-chair Scott said “A good regulator, like a good builder, will adjust to conditions on the ground. We will need to, and are in fact required to, actively gather the evidence that will inform us as we go.”
The conditions on the ground are showing that the regulatory framework is failing to support investment. Canadians are looking for Ottawa to incentivize investment across all sectors in the economy. Telecom capital investment is foundational for AI and the digital evolution of every other business.
As National Bank Financial warned earlier this week, “Without a course correction from Ottawa and its regulators, declining network investment precludes a strong foundation on which to build.”