Vol. 500 No. 4
163 Mr. Kenny asked the Minister for Public Enterprise the extent of the ISDN line network; her Department's policy in extending this to companies in all parts of the country in the context of its importance as a communication and economic developmental facility; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [4238/99]
Ireland requires a national spread of high capacity, competitive telecommunications infrastructure if it is to exploit the opportunities offered by the information age. In this regard I have recently taken a series of steps which I believe will create an environment leading to the roll out of such infrastructure throughout the country.
First, the implementation of telecommunications liberalisation from 1 December 1998 will, I believe, foster competition in the marketplace and thus the spread of telecommunications infrastructure. Second, recognising that in certain regions of the country competition alone will not provide the required investment, I have recently made available European Union Structural Funds to projects supporting the development of advanced communications networks and services in these regions.
