M J Nolan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)

It is important to note that an up-to-date communications system is critical for the continued economic and social prosperity of this country. Our discussion of this subject is timely. We have made great strides in the quality of broadband services throughout the country, but we must be honest with ourselves, on all sides of the House, and admit there have been shortcomings in the service. There are black spots. I do not think there is a constituency in the country without problems. Since everyone else is being parochial, I will be too. As late as today I had calls from constituents in Grange in County Carlow and Goresbridge in County Kilkenny — two rural communities — from individuals who feel they have been let down by the Department in the roll-out of broadband. I was glad to hear the Minister confirm last night that the provision of a broadband service is a major priority for this Government and that he will continue to invest significant resources in ensuring that those black spots are addressed.

It is also important to note that an estimated 1 million customers across six platforms are now in receipt of a good-quality broadband service. Of our five mobile phone providers, three offer mobile broadband. It is also important to acknowledge the success of the metropolitan area networks in our towns. Phase two, which will extend the service to 27 more towns, is currently in progress. In my own town of Carlow, if it were not for the significant investment in the provision of a high-quality broadband system by the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources in tandem with the local authority, we would not have been successful in attracting significant foreign direct investment over the last six months. Without this first-class service, it would have been difficult for domestic and local industries and commercial operators to continue to operate competitively.

It is also important to consider the provision of broadband from the point of view of commuting. We are all interested in our carbon footprints and so on. If we had an acceptable level of service throughout the country we could make great strides in ensuring that many more people could work from home. They would not have to take their cars to their places of employment, causing congestion on the roadways. We have invested a lot in our infrastructure. I would like to see the continuing success of decentralisation and that can only happen in areas with a high-quality broadband service.

Local authorities have also benefited from investment in this area. Eircom has been singularly unhelpful in dealing with many of the problems involved in the provision of broadband services. In my communications with Eircom, it certainly could have done far better than it is doing. For example, I know of two houses side by side in a town of which one house can get broadband with no difficulty, while the subscriber next door cannot. I am talking about people in their 50s or 60s who may not be technically qualified to understand the details of why they can or cannot get a service. Eircom could do a lot more, on the PR side, in trying to explain the difficulties it is encountering in the provision of services. By the end of this month there will be almost 800,000 subscribers, which is a sixfold increase on four years ago. We may have had a slow start but we are now growing rapidly. I wish the Minister and his Department continued success.

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