Certain statements made in this report are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements relating to our business outlook, objectives, plans and strategic priorities, including, in particular, our ESG objectives (which include, without limitation, our objectives concerning diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI), customer experience, energy savings, reductions in waste sent to landfill, e-waste recovery, community investment, privacy and information security, corporate governance and ethical business conduct leadership, reductions in the level of our greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions including, without limitation, our plans to be carbon neutral for our operational GHG emissions starting in 2025 and to achieve science-based targets (SBTs) by 2030, and our carbon abatement objectives), our anticipated capital expenditures, network deployment plans and the benefits expected to result therefrom, including our two-year increased capital expenditure acceleration program for the accelerated expansion of our fibre, Wireless Home Internet (WHI) and Fifth Generation (5G) networks, and other statements that are not historical facts. A statement we make is forward-looking when it uses what we know and expect today to make a statement about the future. Forward-looking statements are typically identified by the words assumption, goal, guidance, objective, outlook, project, strategy, target, and other similar expressions or future or conditional verbs such as aim, anticipate, believe, could, expect, intend, may, plan, seek, should, strive and will. All such forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the ‘safe harbour’ provisions of applicable Canadian securities laws and of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.

Unless otherwise indicated by us, the forward-looking statements contained in this report describe our expectations as of March 3, 2022, and, accordingly, are subject to change after such date. Except as may be required by applicable securities laws, we do not undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements contained in this report, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Forward-looking statements, by their very nature, are subject to inherent risks and uncertainties and are based on several assumptions, both general and specific, which give rise to the possibility that actual results or events could differ materially from our expectations expressed in, or implied by, such forward-looking statements and that our business outlook, objectives, plans and strategic priorities may not be achieved. These statements are not guarantees of future performance or events, and we caution you against relying on any of these forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are presented in this report for the purpose of assisting readers in understanding, in particular, certain key elements of our corporate responsibility and ESG objectives, and in obtaining a better understanding of our anticipated operating environment. Readers are cautioned, however, that such information may not be appropriate for other purposes.

We have made certain economic, market, operational and other assumptions in preparing the forward-looking statements contained in this report. These assumptions include, without limitation, the assumptions described in this cautionary statement as well as in the sub-sections of BCE Inc.’s 2021 Annual MD&A dated March 3, 2022 (included in BCE Inc.’s 2021 Annual Report) entitled Assumptions, which sub-sections are incorporated by reference in this cautionary statement. The BCE Inc. 2021 Annual MD&A has been filed by BCE Inc. with the Canadian provincial securities regulatory authorities (available at Sedar.com) and with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (available at SEC.gov), and is also available at BCE.ca. Subject to various factors including, without limitation, the future impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, which are difficult to predict, we believe that our assumptions were reasonable at March 3, 2022. If our assumptions turn out to be inaccurate, actual results or events could be materially different from what we expect.

Important risk factors that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, the previously-mentioned forward-looking statements and other forward-looking statements contained in this report, include, but are not limited to: internal factors, such as the failure to implement sufficient corporate and business initiatives, as well as various external factors, which could challenge our ability to achieve our ESG targets including, without limitation, those related to GHG emissions reduction and DEI; the inability to adequately manage social issues; the adverse effects of the COVID-19 pandemic including from the restrictive measures implemented or to be implemented as a result thereof and supply chain disruptions; adverse economic and financial market conditions, a declining level of retail and commercial activity, and the resulting negative impact on the demand for, and prices of, our products and services; the intensity of competitive activity including from new and emerging competitors; the level of technological substitution and the presence of alternative service providers contributing to disruptions and disintermediation in each of our business segments; changing customer behaviour and the expansion of over-the-top (OTT) television (TV) and other alternative service providers, as well as the fragmentation of, and changes in, the advertising market; rising content costs and challenges in our ability to acquire or develop key content; the proliferation of content piracy; higher Canadian smartphone penetration and reduced or slower immigration flow; regulatory initiatives, proceedings and decisions, government consultations and government positions that affect us and influence our business including, without limitation, concerning the conditions and prices at which access to our networks may be mandated and spectrum may be acquired in auctions; the inability to protect our physical and non-physical assets from events such as information security attacks, unauthorized access or entry, fire and natural disasters; the failure to implement effective data governance; the failure to evolve and transform our networks, systems and operations using next-generation technologies, while lowering our cost structure; the inability to drive a positive customer experience; the failure to attract, develop and retain a diverse and talented team capable of furthering our strategic imperatives; labour disruptions and shortages; the failure to maintain operational networks; the risk that we may need to incur significant unplanned capital expenditures to provide additional capacity and reduce network congestion; the complexity in our operations; the failure to implement or maintain highly effective processes and information technology (IT) systems; events affecting the functionality of, and our ability to protect, test, maintain, replace and upgrade, our networks, IT systems, equipment and other facilities; in-orbit and other operational risks to which the satellites used to provide our satellite TV services are subject; our dependence on third-party suppliers, outsourcers, and consultants to provide an uninterrupted supply of the products and services we need; the failure of our vendor selection, governance and oversight processes, including our management of supplier risk in the areas of security, data governance and responsible procurement; the quality of our products and services and the extent to which they may be subject to defects or fail to comply with applicable government regulations and standards; the inability to access adequate sources of capital and generate sufficient cash flows from operating activities to meet our cash requirements, fund capital expenditures and provide for planned growth; uncertainty as to whether dividends will be declared by BCE Inc.’s board of directors or whether the dividend on common shares will be increased; the inability to manage various credit, liquidity and market risks; new or higher taxes due to new tax laws or changes thereto or in the interpretation thereof, and the inability to predict the outcome of government audits; the failure to reduce costs, as well as unexpected increases in costs, and the inability to generate anticipated benefits from acquisitions and corporate restructurings; the failure to evolve practices to effectively monitor and control fraudulent activities; pension obligation volatility and increased contributions to post-employment benefit plans; unfavourable resolution of legal proceedings and, in particular, class actions; the failure to develop and implement strong corporate governance practices and compliance frameworks and to comply with legal and regulatory obligations; the failure to recognize and adequately respond to climate change and other environmental concerns and expectations; and pandemics, epidemics and other health risks, including health concerns about radio frequency emissions from wireless communication devices and equipment.

These and other risk factors that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from our expectations expressed in, or implied by, our forward-looking statements are discussed in this report as well as in section 9, Business risks of the BCE Inc. 2021 Annual MD&A, which section, and the other sections of the BCE Inc. 2021 Annual MD&A referred to therein, are incorporated by reference in this cautionary statement.

Forward-looking statements contained in this report for periods beyond 2022 involve longer-term assumptions and estimates than forward-looking statements for 2022 and are consequently subject to greater uncertainty. In particular, our GHG emissions reduction targets are based on a number of assumptions including, without limitation, the following principal assumptions: implementation of various corporate and business initiatives to reduce our electricity and fuel consumption, as well as reduce other direct and indirect GHG emissions enablers; no new corporate initiatives, business acquisitions or technologies that would materially increase our anticipated levels of GHG emissions; our ability to purchase sufficient credible carbon credits and renewable energy certificates to offset or further reduce our GHG emissions, if and when required; no negative impact on the calculation of our GHG emissions from refinements in or modifications to international standards or the methodology we use for the calculation of such GHG emissions; no required changes to our SBTs pursuant to the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) methodology that would make the achievement of our updated SBTs more onerous; and sufficient supplier engagement and collaboration in setting their own SBTs and sufficient collaboration with partners in reducing their own GHG emissions. In addition, our DEI targets are based on a number of assumptions including, without limitation, the following principal assumptions: ability to leverage DEI partnerships and recruitment agencies to help identify qualified diverse talent for vacant positions; sufficient diverse labour market availability; implementation of corporate and business initiatives to increase awareness, education and engagement in support of our DEI targets; and propensity of existing employees and of job-seekers to self-identify to enable a diverse workforce representation.

Forward-looking statements for periods beyond 2022 further assume, unless otherwise indicated, that the risks described above and in section 9, Business risks of the BCE Inc. 2021 Annual MD&A will remain substantially unchanged during such periods, except for an assumed improvement in the risks related to the COVID-19 pandemic and general economic conditions in future years.

We caution readers that the risks described above are not the only ones that could affect us. Additional risks and uncertainties not currently known to us or that we currently deem to be immaterial may also have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, liquidity, financial results or reputation. From time to time, we consider potential acquisitions, dispositions, mergers, business combinations, investments, monetizations, joint ventures and other transactions, some of which may be significant. Except as otherwise indicated by BCE Inc., forward-looking statements do not reflect the potential impact of any such transactions or of special items that may be announced or that may occur after March 3, 2022. The financial impact of these transactions and special items can be complex and depends on the facts particular to each of them. We therefore cannot describe the expected impact in a meaningful way or in the same way we present known risks affecting our business.

This report contains data about the BCE group of companies, referred to collectively in this report as “BCE”, “Bell”, “we”, “us”, “our” or “company”.

For information on the reporting period and organizational boundaries, see the About this report section on our website.