Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to speak on this Bill. We should not underestimate the importance of broadband to the future development of this country. It is probably as important to us now as the Shannon scheme was to rural electrification between the late 1920s and the 1950s. It is a pity the Bill has not received the amount of media coverage it deserved. As previous speakers have noted, rural areas are at a significant competitive disadvantage when it comes to the delivery of services and carrying out commercial activities. This is the case even when it comes to basic levels of online services, such as those provided by the Government, or educational facilities.

The Bill will help by allowing ESB to use existing national infrastructure. It is relevant to speak about national infrastructure because the Minister, Deputy Rabbitte, would not be introducing this Bill were it not for the botched sale of Eircom by a previous Government, whereby everything from the service to the infrastructure was disposed of. Had we retained the infrastructure in State ownership we probably would not need this legislation. We are, however, lucky that the infrastructure of poles, lattices and pylons, even if the latter is a dirty word at present, in every parish, electoral division and townland that can remediate the damage done by the botched sale of Eircom.

Most of the people I represent live in rural parts of County Limerick. My constituency has a network of small towns and villages but there are now urban centres of the 20,000 or 30,000 people scale. The population base I serve is dispersed and topographical features such as hills, mountains and castles can interfere with wireless signals. This puts businesses, schools and private individuals at a disadvantage. However, outside everyone's door there is an ESB pole which can potentially carry a fibre-optic cable. Whether one lives in Ballsbridge or Ballingarry one should be able to access the same level of service. A new utility, Irish Water, has recently been established. The Bill before us should not apply solely to the ESB. Every company or body involved in laying infrastructure, be it Bord Gáis, Irish Water, the National Roads Authority or Irish Rail, should be encouraged to develop joint ventures that take advantage of existing infrastructure to roll out broadband. This would also increase competition.

The benefits of broadband access are obvious. Certain primary schools in my area have difficulty accessing basic broadband speeds for use with interactive white boards. Last Monday I had a discussion in Limerick Institute of Technology with a company that uses new technology in a games based environment to teach basic principles of maths and science to students at primary level and junior certificate level. The new junior certificate will make the child an active agent in his or her own education. What better way to be an active agent than to have access to high speed and reliable broadband? I refer to the broadband service that is currently available in many parts of the country as "bogband" because of its slowness and unreliability. We can expand children's horizons by allowing them to interact with children in schools in Ireland and around the world so that they can draw on the experience of other teachers and schools. If one can access high speed broadband in Ayer's Rock, in the middle of Australia, why is it not available in rural parts of Ireland?

I note that the Fianna Fáil benches are empty. Deputies from that party have been critical of the speed with which this issue is being addressed. The Minister's focus has been on clearing up other messes but the delivery of a service that is currently unavailable to many communities will be a legacy project for this Government.

There are other big benefits that can be gained. One of the issues of concern to me, as someone who comes from a rural area, is that of rural isolation. In the recent past there have been questions asked about, for example, alarm systems for those living on their own. A high speed quality broadband system that allows safe access and is reliable will provide the infrastructure for those living on their own to be protected, including man-down alarms, closed circuit television systems or basic communication methods. Recently I met a woman in her 70s who informed me that she had received an iPad from her daughter who was living in Australia and that she now used FaceTime. That is the type of technology that is of importance to such persons. They might not have people calling as frequently as they did because we are living faster lives and do not have the time we used to have years ago to spend with our neighbours, but if they at least had this infrastructure on which they could rely, it would provide a safety net for many of those who feel isolated.

Retail businesses all over the country are finding it difficult owing to the collapse of the economy. Access to a quality broadband system would also enhance their capability to carry on business online that they might not necessarily have done to the degree it can be done in other countries. The Irish retail sector is lagging behind that in other European countries when it comes to online business and e-commerce. There is an opportunity for the Ministers, Deputies Richard Bruton and John Perry, and their Department to encourage such companies to engage in more retail activity online with a view to reaching out to those who cannot be reached at present.

I had the great pleasure of visiting Ardnacrusha to mark the 75th anniversary of the River Shannon scheme, on which my grandfather had worked. I was delighted to meet the former Taoiseach, Mr. Liam Cosgrave, whose father, Mr. W. T. Cosgrave, had laid the scheme's foundation stone. This shows how far we have come in the building of infrastructure. At the time it was said they did not need this and that they were "happy out", but technology has evolved. The one critical point that has been proved since the 1920s concerns the importance of the ESB in the provision of national infrastructure. The use of that infrastructure in the future cannot be underestimated, which is why I believe that in any change in governance of the ESB it must be clear and categorical that the infrastructure is sacrosanct and must be maintained for posterity in State hands. We see in this Bill the potential of that infrastructure to do more than merely switch on a light. As a stated, in the future high speed quality broadband will be every bit as important as water and electricity in how we go about our daily lives. This is a simple but empowering Bill. In some ways it is probably reflective of the yardbrush mentality that we as a Government have where we have to sweep up what has been left behind following the botched sale of eircom. However, it is being done, and at a time it will be welcomed. From my point of view, as someone who represents a constituency that has been put at a major disadvantage in terms of infrastructure, I welcome it.

I will make one final comment. Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív who is not in the House spoke about his commitment to the provision of broadband, which I do not for one minute deny. In fact, at a meeting of a group once upon a time in the Devon Inn Hotel in Templeglantine, County Limerick when I was a member of Limerick County Council and he was Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs he bemoaned the fact that there was not a broadband scheme in west Limerick, from where I come. At the time I challenged him, asking him if it had anything to do with the fact that the Government had sold off eircom and the infrastructure, but I did not recevie an answer. Perhaps he might like to revisit that issue and indicate why that sell-off has left the people at such a disadvantage which we are trying to remediate.

This is good legislation which is badly needed. In terms of the needs of education, business and members of the community who are trying to go about their daily lives, it will be welcomed.

I would like to make one final point.

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