Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 26 February 2013
96. Deputy Seamus Kirk asked the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources his views on the speed of broadband services available nationwide; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10080/13]
Amharc ar fhreagraConsiderable progress has been made in recent years in both the speeds and coverage 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 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 30 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 at least 30 Mbps are available to all of our citizens and businesses, well in advance of the EU's target date of 2020.
During the preparation of Ireland's national broadband plan, the commercial market operators indicated that they expect to provide 70 Mbps to 100 Mbps services to 50% of the population by 2015. The commercial sector is already committed to investments of the order of some €1 billion which will deliver broadband speeds of 30 Mbps to 150 Mbps to homes and businesses. For example, Eircom is investing up to €500 million in a phased deployment of fibre to the cabinet infrastructure, which is planned to make high-speed broadband available to some 1.2 million premises. The network has already reached more than 230,000 premises and is expected to be launched over the coming months. UPC is investing €500 million in its cable and fibre network, which is delivering speeds of up to 150Mbps. UPC aims to have this service available to 700,000 homed by 2015. Mobile telecommunications operators will be rolling out advanced mobile broadband products in 2013, following the recent multi-band spectrum auction.
Additional information not given on the floor of the House
The national broadband plan commits the Government to investing in areas where high speed services are not commercially viable and will not be provided by the market. My Department is making preparations to commence a formal national mapping exercise to inform the level of Government interaction that may be required and the areas that need to be targeted for a State-led investment. It will also form a critical input to an EU state aid application in respect of any State-led intervention. This will ensure that citizens or businesses, wherever they are located, have a broadband connection which meets their needs to interact effectively with society and business. I reiterate that the Government remains committed to the delivery of the speeds referred to in the plan, to ensure that all parts of Ireland will have at least 30 Mbps connectivity.
The first question that I had put down for Priority Questions today was ruled out of order because of the urban-rural regulator. I was disappointed that it was ruled out of order because the regulator has a huge responsibility.
Does the Minister really believe that broadband is being rolled out nationwide? Nothing will divide urban and rural Ireland more than this broadband issue. We have discussed this here in response to previous questions. Does the Minister believe this is happening for the people who are being left behind?
Will the initiatives the Minister has launched and will launch reach the desired target in the next few years?
As the Deputy knows, the architecture of the plan we published in August last year essentially envisages a three-tier formation. In other words, by 2015 some 50% of the population will have access to very high-speed industrial strength broadband. By the end of the lifetime of the Government in 2016, a further 20% of the population will have a broadband speed of 40 Mbps or better. The remaining tier which could be up to 30% of the population is the one on which Deputy Michael Moynihan is focusing. Again, the commitment is that by the end of the lifetime of the Government, no area in that tier will have a broadband speed of less than 30 Mbps, or 15 times what is available to them.
On the prospectus we are putting together, we have to go through the state-aid process. We are about to commence the mapping exercise that will have to be conducted across the country. We have to obtain EU approval because State intervention is demanded as the commercial sector will not meet the demands of some of that area, if not a good deal of it. The prospectus will require the successful bidders to commit to a broadband speed of 30 Mbps. The contracts, accordingly, will not be signed unless that commitment is made.
There are some other interesting innovations in this area, one of which is being led by the ESB which is in the process of selecting a partner for a joint vehicle to roll out fibre optic to parts of the country that would not otherwise reasonably expect to have it. There are developments on the ground that are leading to improvements every day.
Our digital inclusion strategy, to which the broadband strategy is central, is incredibly important. The Government has a good strategy. However, in the light of recent EU budget cuts for broadband strategy from €8.2 billion to €1 billion, a dramatic reduction, have we examined how this will change the Government's strategy launched last August?
I had hoped my parliamentary question on the national broadband plan would be taken today. Sections of my constituency in County Kerry cannot have broadband and providers are giving the customers affected refunds because they simply cannot provide broadband for these areas. People in the Maharees, near Castlegregory, have been in contact with me about this matter and are very frustrated. Those who want to work from home or set up a business in these areas simply cannot do so because of the lack of broadband. As was rightly pointed out by Deputy Michael Moynihan, this is a matter that could significantly divide rural and urban Ireland and it is one that needs to be tackled. What hope can the Minister give those who have been told there is no broadband service available for them?
There appears to be an oversupply of fibre optic lines between this country and Britain through undersea and expensive lines. They more than cater for current and projected Internet traffic. However, there is an inadequate fibre network in this country. I am glad the Minister referred to the ESB project because we need to examine how utility networks such as water mains, telecoms, rail lines and gas lines could be used as a means on which a fibre optic network could piggyback. Such a roll-out would save the country much money. Having a fibre optic network is the only way we can hit the targets the Minister has outlined in his strategy.
Deputy Murphy is right. The putative €9.2 billion that was notionally allocated for the connecting Europe facility was diminished during the process leading to the conclusion of the multi-annual financial framework budgetary discussions. The figure on the telecommunications side now is a rather miserly €1 billion. However, I do not believe it will have much impact on our circumstances. This subject came up at a conference I attended yesterday morning involving Engineers Ireland. A leading representative of the telecommunications sector was there and she confirmed my remarks to the effect that the private commercial sector is not having a difficulty sourcing funding for telecommunications projects. There may well be some difficulties in other areas but not in the telecommunications area. To answer Deputy Murphy's question, I do not believe the development under the multi-annual financial framework will much impact on our digital inclusion policies.
Deputy Griffin knows that there are no lengths to which I would not be prepared to go to ensure that Kerry is in no way disadvantaged in any regard, except that the league team is struggling at the moment and that I can live with.
It is only February.
The Minister should be under no illusions. It is only February.
The answer I gave earlier to Deputy Moynihan covers Kerry as well and that is the plan. In the short term Deputy Griffin ought to examine if any of the areas to which he referred are covered under the national broadband strategy. The strategy was an agreement entered into between a leading telecommunications company and the previous Government and there is a facility under the agreement such that the company was required to deliver to a particular area. If it turns out that the company did not do so then there is a facility to take up that matter. In addition if there were individual premises at a disadvantage they would have had a facility under the rural broadband scheme to subscribe to it. I am unsure how many have done so but it may be that some of the premises to which Deputy Griffin referred are included in that.
Deputy Colreavy asked me if I believed there is wasteful or excessive international connectivity between here and Britain. That is not my advice but I will certainly check it. The Deputy will understand that given the nature of our industry these days as well as the growth of the services sector, international connectivity is crucial and an important aspect of our lifeline. In my answer I referred to the €500 million investment by Eircom in fibre roll-out to the cabinet infrastructure designed to hit 1.2 million premises. The UPC €500 million investment is in cable and fibre network. Anyway, there is no country in the world that I know of which has high quality fibre in remote areas of sparse population. That is the international precedent. In fact, parts of the United States have no broadband at all.
