Noel Coonan (Tipperary North, Fine Gael)

In the three years I have been a Member of the House, I have heard the Minister pontificate about what he is doing in terms of broadband and set targets which he has consistently failed to meet. To hear him say he anticipates a demand for high speed broadband is really maddening, especially if one comes from my region of the mid-west which has the highest unemployment figures in the country.

When will we see developments because with almost 500,000 people unemployed, most of whom are in the mid-west, the IDA and Shannon Development have stated clearly that the most significant barrier to job creation in the mid-west is the lack of a high speed broadband system? It is simply not there. The networks have been in the ground for years and it is frustrating for people. When will we see those networks connected and a one-stop-shop, the details of which have been published, so that companies can access information from a one-stop-shop?

I would like a timeframe and for the Minister to state when this will happen. He could have given this answer last September. I do not want to listen to the same story from the Minister next September.

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