Federal government must help N.L. internet access: minister

Newfoundland and Labrador's Innovation Minister deflected accusations Monday that the provincial government is not doing enough to provide high-speed internet access to rural parts of the province.

Susan Sullivan said 80 per cent of the province now has high-speed or broadband access, thanks in part to government investments.

But Liberal MHA Marshall Dean told the legislature too many people have been left out.

"With the government's broadband strategy on hold, residents families and businesses in rural Newfoundland and Labrador are placed at a serious disadvantage in today's information-based economy," he said.

Sullivan said they can't make broadband mandatory because it falls under federal jurisdiction. She said it's up to the federal government and internet providers.

"I wish that we could mandate high-speed Internet in all areas of this province. We can't. It's beyond our jurisdiction," she said in the house of assembly.