Mr. Patrick Neary:

NBI's network is reusing, to a large extent, the infrastructure owned by Eir, that is, its poles and ducts. One of the first steps of building that network is to indicate to Eir where it intends to reuse that infrastructure. Eir then goes off and remediates and makes sure the poles and ducts are available and can be used for NBI's fibre. An intensive exercise is happening between NBI and Eir on that basis. There is a huge complexity to unblocking those ducts that have been there for many years and ensuring the poles are fit for purpose, a number of which would need to be replaced. Eir has undertaken and committed to that huge exercise as part of NBI's delivery. Ensuring that happens efficiently and well is a high focus for the whole project. The NBI interface into Eir is a positive one. They work through much of that detailed, high-volume and high-capacity complexity and are doing that day to day and week on week. The output from that is, ultimately, the premises are passed with fibre. NBI and Eir are working closely on that huge exercise. The Senator asked why fibre is so close to her and she cannot get access. I am assuming that is Eir's network and the question is why Eir cannot extend further. Why it does not go any further than it has is a matter for Eir. It has announced it is focusing on the urban suburban areas and will deploy a fibre network to that footprint. That seems to be the priority for Eir at present.