Broadband coverage A Government Responsibility

12.49.08pm GMT Mon 17th Nov 2003

Commenting on today's announcement from BT that 100 per cent broadband coverage of every UK community is achievable by 2005 if industry and government pull together, Malcolm Bruce MP, Liberal Democrat Shadow DTI Secretary, said: "BT's target shows big ambition but it cannot do it alone. The Government has a vital role to play in achieving 100% broadband coverage and it must provide support to push broadband availability to those remote areas of Britain the market cannot reach."

"Previous governments' have used state owned corporations to deliver universal phone and national grid coverage. Today's Government must come up with a mechanism that will ensure a liberalised market can still deliver maximum choice to the entire population."

"Living in remote regions of the UK should not mean people are distanced from technological benefits such as broadband."

ENDS

NOTES TO EDITORS

BT announced today that it was extending its demand registration scheme for ADSL broadband by setting triggers for a further 2,300 exchanges, serving two million homes and businesses. Today's development means 32 exchanges will be upgraded immediately. When all the exchanges are enabled more than 99.1 per cent of UK homes and businesses would be connected to broadband exchanges.

Today's announcement still leaves 600 of the very smallest exchanges without a trigger level, each serving fewer than 300 customers. Ten of these serve fewer than ten customers each. These areas, serving around 100,000 households, will also require different partnership investment approaches to receive broadband.