Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 23 June 2020
784. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development if a consolidated list will be provided of the original broadband connection points, BCPs; the sites that have either declined or withdrawn from the plan to roll out BCPs in tabular form; the reason cited for the withdrawal of the premises from the plan; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12190/20]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Broadband Connection Point (BCP) initiative is a collaborative effort involving my Department, the Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment and the Local Authorities.
BCPs will be among the first sites connected under the National Broadband Plan (NBP) and will be provided with a wireless high-speed broadband connection which will be available to the public onsite and free of charge. They will be located in rural and isolated areas, including islands off the coasts of Cork, Donegal, Galway, Kerry and Mayo.
The BCP sites are typically community-owned and managed premises, such as community resource centres. Participation in the initiative is entirely voluntary and each site was initially identified by Local Authority Broadband Officers.
The identification of sites and engagement with their owners has been an ongoing, iterative process over the last number of years, while awaiting the successful completion of the National Broadband Plan procurement process.
At the time of the award of the National Broadband Plan contract (November 2019) there were approximately 300 identified sites that had agreed in principle to host public access broadband. However, no contracts or other formal agreements were entered into with the site owners at that stage.
In the intervening 7 months, a number of sites withdrew from the programme for a variety of reasons, including the permanent closure of premises, the provision of a commercial broadband service to the premises, or the site owner’s decision to no longer participate. In such cases, the BCPs have been, or are being, substituted with alternative sites.
The majority of BCPs are expected to be connected before the end of 2020, with the rest connected in early 2021. Further information on the BCPs, including a locator map, can be found at https://nbi.ie/broadband-connection-points/.
