Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 4 July 2013
163. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources the current proposals to extend modern high-speed broadband facilities including fibre optics to the area of Rathcoffey, Donadea and Naas, County Kildare, with particular reference to the requirement of a person (details supplied) in County Kildare; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32661/13]
View answerConsiderable progress has been made in recent years in both the coverage and speeds of national broadband infrastructure, with a multiplicity of commercial operators, providing services over a diverse range of technology platforms.
The Government has also undertaken a number of initiatives to bring broadband to those parts of the country where commercial operators have been unable to offer services. The combination of private investment and State interventions such as the National Broadband Scheme means that Ireland has met the EU Commission’s Digital Agenda for Europe target of having a basic broadband service available to all areas by 2013.
The Government, through the National Broadband Plan, which I published on 30th August last year, has recognised that the key imperative now is to ensure high speed broadband availability to all. The Plan commits to high speed broadband availability across the country by ensuring that high speed services of 30Mbps are available to all of our citizens and businesses, and 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.
We are now therefore moving to a new phase of public and private sector investment in broadband in Ireland which will see significantly improved speeds delivered across the country.
Since the publication of the Plan, investments by the commercial sector are underway in both fixed line and wireless high speed broadband services.
In tandem with these commercial developments, intensive work is underway in my Department to progress a State-led investment to secure the introduction of next generation broadband access.
In order to progress the State-led investment, a full procurement process must be designed and EU State Aids approval must be obtained. My Department has launched a formal mapping exercise to identify the areas of the country to be targeted in the State-led investment under the Government’s National Broadband Plan to ensure the provision of high speed broadband services where the commercial market will not deliver. This exercise will inform an EU State Aids application in respect of the State-led intervention and is a necessary prerequisite for State Aids approval.
Intensive technical, financial and legal preparations including stakeholder engagement will be ongoing throughout 2013 with a view to the launch of a procurement process in 2014.
Through the implementation of the National Broadband Plan, we are committed to increasing the availability of next generation speeds significantly, with a view to ensuring that all citizens and businesses can participate fully in a digitally enabled society.
