South Down MP Margaret Ritchie (SDLP) has called for more funding and support from the Government for super-fast broadband provision in rural areas.
Ms Ritchie said: “Rural homes and businesses in the North of Ireland and particularly in South Down are in desperate need of greater accessibility to super-fast broadband. Despite pledges from Ministers in Stormont and Westminster, rural broadband provision is still extremely poor in many areas and there is simply not enough funding for local improvement. With the recent news that the ‘Broadband Voucher Scheme’ has been cancelled due to a lack of funds, there is an ever widening gap of speed and quality between rural and urban areas.
“Farmers and businesses rely on a strong internet connection in order to operate effectively, and with the move toward internet applications for financial and accounting services, a strong connection for rural premises is vital now more than ever. Only 37% of broadband connections in the North are ‘super-fast’, compared to over 80% in the UK.
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South Down MP Margaret Ritchie has secured a debate in the Commons to address key issues of Broadband delivery in Northern Ireland.[/caption]
“I have spoken with many farmers and businesses in rural areas in South Down who are losing income and suffering as a result of extremely slow satellite and fixed-line internet connections which are preventing them from submitting financial and business reports. Residents in rural areas are also often unable to access the most basic online features such as email and social media, isolating them from urban dwellers.
“Rural broadband provision is underfunded in the North and it is time that the Government stepped up to the mark to give farmers, home owners and businesses a commitment to enhance super-fast broadband provision as soon as possible.”
Ms Ritchie added: “The UK Government has overall responsibility for rural broadband provision through the Department of Culture, Media and Sport, and so must commit to accelerate the standard and quality of rural broadband provision.
“To this end, I have secured a debate on rural broadband speeds in Northern Ireland in the House of Commons in the first week of January 2016, where I will be arguing for financial investment in an accelerated programme of rural broadband provision for South Down to ensure greater levels of accessibility to this technology for all citizens, whether the residential properties or in businesses.”
The implications for Northern Ireland businesses are also significant in the EU context. The European Commission has recently backed an initiave recognising that the digital economy can expand markets and foster more and better services, offer more choice and create new employment along with bringing down the barriers that are holding the EU digital single market back. This could contribute an additional EUR 415 billion to EU GDP overall. The European Commission also believes that the availability of high-speed broadband Internet and access to digital service infrastructures are the elementary units of a digital single market which allowins communication, services and businesses to grow, and allows sectors such as e-commerce and e-government to exploit their full potential, and in doing so, diminish the rural broadband divide.
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