Robert Troy
Question:359. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources if he will identify all broadband blackspots in counties Longford and Westmeath. [20004/13]
View answerTuesday, 30 April 2013
Questions (359)
Written answers
The State can only intervene in the broadband market to ensure access to broadband services in areas where the competitive market has failed to deliver such services. The National Broadband Scheme and the Rural Broadband Scheme (NBS & RBS) are examples of such market interventions to provide basic broadband services in areas of the country not served on a commercial basis.
Between a combination of this public financing and the significant private sector investment that continues to be made by the various commercial operators, all parts of the country now have access to at least a basic level of broadband service.
With such services now widely available across Ireland, the focus is on accelerating the roll out of high speed broadband services. The Government’s National Broadband Plan, which I published in August last, aims to radically change the broadband landscape in Ireland by ensuring that high speed services of at least 30Mbps are available to all of our citizens and businesses, well in advance of the EU’s target date of 2020, and that significantly higher speeds are available to as many homes and businesses as possible.