Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 26 September 2007
1186 Deputy Jack Wall asked the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources the position on the roll out of broadband in Kildare; the number of MANs in Kildare; the location of same; the time scale and location of those MANs not rolled out; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21051/07]
View answerThe provision of broadband services is, in the first instance, a matter for the private sector. Broadband service providers operate in a fully liberalised market, regulated by the independent Commission for Communications Regulation.
The role of Government is to formulate regulatory and infrastructure policies to facilitate the provision of affordable, high quality telecommunications services, by competing private sector service providers.
There are 10 Kildare towns listed in Phase II of the MANs Programme. These towns are: Athy, Clane, Kilcock, Kilcullen, Kildare, Maynooth, Monasterevin, Newbridge, Rathangan and Prosperous. The networks are scheduled to be handed over to the Managed Service Entity, responsible for operating and administering the networks, towards the end of 2008.
