Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I acknowledge that Deputy Bríd Smith recognises this is a really important issue for the future of the country. I have worked in a number of Departments and I have seen how this is transforming, and it will continue to accelerate. It is really important. The difference between now and when rural electrification was considered was that we have at this point privatised, for good or ill. Twenty years ago, we sold off Telecom Éireann. We sold off the core of the network so we are not in a position of owning and extending a network but of seeking to provide state aid to tack onto an existing network 146,000 km of fibre cable.

That makes a difference.

The other issue is that procurement law is now very different. Where state aid is being provided, it cannot simply be granted to a company that is a commercial operator. There must be an open procurement process, which is different.

The amount spent by the State to date is €25 million, not €80 million. It is important to have a robust evaluation because the issue is of such importance.

Contrary to what the Deputy said, I see a revival in rural Ireland. I have travelled around the country to visit many projects and see a great new revival. With the funds being made available from the Department of Rural and Community Development under the Minister, Deputy Ring, the bottom-up development that is occurring, the regional enterprise strategies that are being rolled out and the town renewal initiatives, there is a strong revival in rural Ireland. Providing future proofed broadband will offer the super highway of the future to guarantee that remote regions will not be hollowed out by technology but will participate fully in it. That is crucial to the success of rural Ireland because it will allow remote working and remote access to important public services. I have a different view from the Deputy. I consider this to be a very important future proofed investment.

On the studies the Department has made, we have looked at international precedents and also at what is happening in urban Ireland. In principle, we must make the same level of service available to urban and rural areas. There must be access to this digital technology on the same basis in both urban and rural areas, at the same price and with the same connection charge. That is a principle we want to achieve. My Department and I have no reason to believe from the evaluations that have been carried out that the appetite for the uptake of this service will be any different in rural Ireland from that in urban Ireland. Where networks are available online and people can access high quality broadband, the uptake is 65%. That is prevalent; therefore, there is no basis to believe there is a low level of interest and that we are making an investment that does not matter for the future.