Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 16 September 2021
156. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications the number of broadband connection points installed in County Kildare in the past 12 months to date; the number of installations planned over the next 12 months; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [44353/21]
View answerBroadband Connection Points (BCPs) are a key element of the NBP providing high speed broadband in every county in advance of the roll out of the fibre to the home network. As of 3 September, 366 BCP sites have been installed by NBI across the country and the high speed broadband service will be switched on in these locations through service provider contracts managed by the Department of Rural and Community Development for publicly accessible sites and the Department of Education for schools. BCP locations in each county were selected in conjunction with the Broadband Officer in each Local Authority, in order to find the appropriate mix of locations to reap the maximum benefits. BCP sites installed and connected in County Kildare include Crookstown Further Education and Training And Community Centre, Lullymore Heritage Park and Bigstone Community Hall. Further details can be found at nbi.ie/bcp-map/. No further public BCPs are planned for Kildare at this time but it is worth noting that Kildare already has a significant number of hubs that fall outside the Intervention Area.My Department continues to work with the Department of Education to prioritise schools with no high speed broadband, within the Intervention Area, for connection over the term of the NBP. In this regard, an acceleration of this aspect of the National Broadband Plan was announced in December which will see some 677 primary schools connected to high speed broadband by 2022, well ahead of the original target delivery timeframe of 2026. Saint David's National School and Rathmore National School in County Kildare were included as part of this initiative and have since been connected. Scoil Náisiúnta Cill Cae, Scoil Náisiúnta Na Cloiche Moire, Killashee National School, Churchtown National School, Scoil Náisiúnta Naomh Iopseh, North Kildare Educate Together School, St Anne’s National School and Kilberry National School are due to be connected in the coming months. Further details are available on the NBI website at nbi.ie/primary-schools-list/
