Mr. Fintan O'Brien:

I thank the committee for the opportunity to address it this morning. With me today is my colleague Mr. Brendan Whelan, principal officer in the regional development and innovation unit. I welcome the opportunity to update the committee on the work of the Department in the context of the importance that Our Rural Future assigns to issues of digital connectivity for rural communities. Our Rural Future is the Government’s policy for rural development for the period 2021 to 2025. It sets out a vision for a thriving rural Ireland which is integral to our national, economic, social and environmental well-being and which is built on the interdependence of urban and rural areas. The policy sets out a range of actions to be delivered over its lifetime, with each action assigned to a lead Government Department.

Within this context, the Department of Rural and Community Development is involved in rolling out a number of important initiatives which may be of interest to committee members today. These include: supporting the promotion and availability of remote working spaces in hubs throughout the country; enabling the availability of high-speed broadband connectivity through the broadband connection points; supporting communities in using digital services to provide local activities in rural areas that might otherwise not be available or accessible; supporting the national network of broadband officers in local authorities to facilitate the delivery of high-speed broadband and promoting its benefits; and providing support for innovative digital projects. Through this work and in partnership with our colleagues in the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications and in local authorities, we are aiming to contribute to the adoption of digital technologies and to closing the digital divide between rural and urban areas.

I will provide a brief overview of the programmes we run or are involved in, which I hope will provide insight into the role of the Department. Regarding connected hubs, while there was a move towards blended and flexible working pre-pandemic, the timeline was greatly accelerated in 2020 because of Covid-19. Our Rural Future recognises the opportunity for rural rejuvenation that remote working presents and commits to establishing a comprehensive and integrated national network of 400 remote working hubs by 2025. In 2021, connectedhubs.iewas launched, providing a shared online booking and payments platform for member hubs and their users. In parallel, the Department has invested significantly to support the establishment, improvement and sustainability of hubs through the range of schemes which make up the Department's rural development investment programme. There are currently 330 remote and co-working facilities across the country, including 58 broadband connection points, BCPs, onboarded to the connected hubs platform, which means we are well on track to achieving our target of 400 remote working hubs by 2025. In addition to facilitating online bookings and payments, connectedhubs.ieis also a platform for collecting and disseminating information, including the types of hubs available in Ireland.

On the national hubs strategy, the Department’s initial priority has been on establishing the connected hubs network, putting the necessary infrastructure in place and achieving the required initial critical mass. Following strong progress on the establishment and awareness-raising phase of the project, our focus has now shifted to the next stage of development. To this end, the Department, in conjunction with colleagues from the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, is leading on the formulation of a national hubs strategy, which will set out the future direction for the national network of hubs incorporating enterprise, remote working and community services at hubs across the country. One of the overall objectives is to ensure the strategic development and long-term sustainability of Ireland’s existing hub infrastructure. Key to this is close consultation with hub sector stakeholders and other Departments and State agencies. The strategy will help inform future decisions and enable a coherent approach to planning and investment in the hub sector.

Within the national broadband plan, broadband connection points were developed to provide on-site connectivity for community use at publicly accessible premises in rural areas with poor broadband availability. There are almost 300 of these community-based hubs distributed around the country. They are located in rural and isolated areas including on a number of offshore islands, and are based in community halls, GAA clubs and tourist attractions that are centres of community life. The goal of the BCPs is that community facilities become empowered through this connectivity, to further support their communities and to embrace new opportunities.

There are a number of pilot programmes currently under way, or recently completed, that explore the potential for BCPs to provide additional public benefit. Over the past three years, BCPs have hosted initiatives such as film festivals, music and art lessons and coding and digital skills classes. Funding has been awarded to successful programmes to continue past pilot stage. One example of a successful programme for digital skills is OurKidsCode. This programme provides creative computing family after-school clubs aimed at helping families enjoy and understand computing, while building parents’ confidence to discover technology alongside their children.

Between 2018 and 2021, the Department provided €2 million under the digital innovation programme to trial innovative technologies across rural Ireland. These projects established the viability and efficacy of a number of technologies, including in the areas of rural tourism and public safety. Some of these projects that members may be aware of include the air quality monitoring project in Trim and the smart ring buoy sensor project.

One of the key elements of supporting greater levels of rural digital connectivity over recent years has been the establishment of the broadband officer, BBO, role in each of the 31 local authorities. This role was established as part of the mobile phone and broadband task force, with co-funding provided by the Department. The officers act as the single point of contact for engagement with telecoms operators, assist with roll-out of the NBP and other telecoms projects and create awareness of, and stimulate demand for, broadband services. They are also centrally involved in the establishment and maintenance of broadband connection points. In early 2023, the Department agreed a new role profile for the BBOs. This new role profile ensures the officers are employed full-time in their role and sets out the importance of their role in implementing new and innovative technologies in their local authority area. In short, the BBOs offer an essential connection between the Government and the local communities we serve.

WiFi4EU was a European Commission project that provided funding for free-to-use Wi-Fi in public areas, such as town squares, parks and libraries. Over 1,000 free Wi-Fi hotspots were installed across 27 local authority areas. The Department committed to match the funding provided by the EU in order to add more Wi-Fi hotspots, effectively doubling the value of the investment. The Department has provided total funding of over €1 million to support this initiative. The WiFi4EU scheme commenced in 2018 and concluded in 2023. A new scheme has not been announced by the Commission at this stage.

The mobile phone and broadband task force plays an important role in the delivery of mobile phone and broadband coverage across the country and is managed in collaboration with our colleagues in the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications. The initial iteration of the task force addressed many of the telecommunications challenges identified at its inception. The remaining challenges are more complex but no less important, require a high level of collaboration and in many cases have a longer timeframe for delivery.

The task force currently has four main focus areas, which are: improving mobile phone coverage in rural areas; examining issues around planning permissions and licensing for establishing and sharing telecoms infrastructure; the use of public assets for telecoms purposes; and improving the quality and availability of information for consumers of telecoms services and products. All of these issues are closely linked to the delivery of connectivity in rural and remote areas.

I hope I have provided a useful overview of the work of the Department and the role we play in supporting digital connectivity in rural areas. I am happy to take any questions that members of the committee may have.