Colm Burke (Cork North Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The kind of conversations that are occurring are that the residents meet the people who are out on the road doing the connection to one house. I have had a number of these incidents. The standard reply that they are getting from the employees of Eir is to contact their local politician who will sort it out. We are getting on directly to Eir, which is saying that this is in the amber area and it is not prepared to connect, even though it does have capacity. Eir is saying that because the broadband scheme is costing over €5,000 per house in real terms, it feels that it is not getting anything on its contribution to connect up properties that are technically in the amber area and are the responsibility of NBI.

I am concerned about the lack of engagement that is going on between the providers in dealing with properties on what is the boundary area. I have an example of another estate, for instance, where over 120 houses have been connected to broadband and the houses that are only just across the road but which are not in the estate are all being refused a connection. In fact, some of the new houses that are across the road are also being refused the connection by Eir, even though fewer than ten houses are involved. The company will not engage or connect because these houses, which on the other side of the road from the estate, are in the amber area.