Eamon Ryan (Dublin South, Green Party)

Does the Minister agree that while the numbers are growing significantly, Eircom still holds a massive advantage here in that it holds the last mile connection? Most broadband is going through DSL and copper wire connections and the main companies have said to members of the Joint Committee on Communications, Marine and Natural Resources that the alternative methods, wireless and so forth, are not proving commercially attractive. In those circumstances and in the absence of proper local loop unbundling, we do not have a competitive market. We still have a very significant monopoly. If one considers not only providing DSL broadband but also the next level in terms of voice over Internet broadband and telecommunications, merged services and a range of other new technologies that other countries are starting to roll out, we will still be playing catch-up because of that monopoly.

The Minister said that the solution for the last 10% to 15% of the country must be technology neutral and that the Government and the industry must be involved in finding that solution. That can only mean that he is considering a State subsidy scheme for suppliers to provide broadband for isolated, rural, one-off houses or communities that are not currently acceptable to a network. Is that what the Minister is discussing with the industry?

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