Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 25 October 2022
196. Deputy Jackie Cahill asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications when fibre broadband will be rolled out in Kyle, Cloughjordan, County Tipperary (details supplied); if the acquisition of National Broadband Ireland by a company will speed up this process; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53368/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Question refers to a premises located in the AMBER area on the National Broadband Plan (NBP) High Speed Broadband Map which is available on my Department's website www.broadband.gov.ie The AMBER area represents the area to be served by the network to be deployed under the NBP State led intervention. I am advised by National Broadband Ireland (NBI) that, as of 14 October 2022, over 97,000 premises can order or pre-order a high-speed broadband connection across 25 counties, with over 87,700 premises passed across 25 counties and available for immediate connection. Construction is underway across 26 counties demonstrating that the project is reaching scale. To date, the level of connections is increasing on a daily basis and is in line with or exceeding expectations. NBI has advised that over 5125 premises in County Tipperary are passed with a highspeed fibre broadband network and available for immediate connection.
The focus for NBI will continue to be on ensuring that the build programme is back on track and is building momentum month on month.
NBI has made recent improvements to their website to enhance the provision of information to Oireachtas members. NBI has now completed a suite of changes, creating a portal that will serve as a means for Oireachtas members to proactively search for information relevant to their county/local area. The portal provides an up-to-date picture of NBI’s deployment schedule across the 227 Deployment Areas (DAs) in all 26 counties. A particular county can be selected to view an update of the overall number of premises in the Intervention Area, the overall NBP investment in the county, the number of premises passed and connected to date and the status of each of the Deployment Areas with the anticipated date for connection over the lifetime of the project. The dedicated webpage can be accessed here: www.nbi.ie
Broadband 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. Some 758 BCP sites have been installed by NBI to date 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 school BCPs. In County Tipperary 20 BCP’s have been installed to date. Further details can be found at nbi.ie/bcp-locations/
In County Tipperary 32 schools have been installed by NBI to date for educational access. My Department continues to work with the Department of Education to prioritise schools with no high-speed broadband, within the Intervention Area. Further details of schools in scope are available on the NBI website at nbi.ie/primary-schools-list/
