Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I move:

“That Dáil Éireann:

notes the importance of ensuring that every premises, school and business in Ireland should have access to high speed broadband;

acknowledges that the National Broadband Plan (NBP) aims to address this conclusively;

notes the importance of ensuring that no home, school or business is left behind in the implementation and delivery of the NBP; and calls on the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources to:

— ensure, in particular, that services provided by the telecom sector can be delivered in rural Ireland;

— where there is a doubt of delivery by the telecom sector, provide assurance that those homes, schools or businesses will get an affordable high speed broadband connection and can be included as part of the State intervention if necessary; and

— update the House on the status of the National Broadband Plan procurement process.”

Ar an gcéad dul síos, ba mhaith liom mo chomhghairdeas a ghabháil leis an Aire, Deputy Naughten. I am delighted the Minister has been appointed. I wish him well and look forward to a constructive engagement with him. I know of his energy and enthusiasm and hope he will be able to deal with this massive issue because it is very important that we deal with it.

The motion notes the importance of ensuring that every premises, school and business in Ireland should have access to high speed broadband; acknowledges that the National Broadband Plan, NBP, aims to address this conclusively; and the importance of ensuring that no home, school or business is left behind in the implementation and delivery of the NBP. That is vital for parity of esteem, fairness and equity. In particular, the motion calls on the Minister to ensure that services provided by the telecom sector can be delivered in rural Ireland, and where there is a doubt over delivery by the telecom sector, provide assurance that those homes, schools or businesses will get an affordable high speed broadband connection and can be included as part of the State intervention if necessary. That is very important if we are to thrive as a nation and develop not only our agriculture industry but the many cottage industries and businesses that want to locate in rural Ireland but cannot do so at present. One of the main factors people coming here to take up jobs or those wanting to advertise jobs take into account is the area of broadband provision. It is about high speed connectivity but it is unfair and wrong that people living in towns and regions in rural Ireland, down to the parishes and the streets, and farmers in rural Ireland have one hand tied behind their backs, and sometimes two, because of the lack of a broadband service. That is deplorable and it is time we dealt with this once and for all. We should grasp the nettle and ensure that every house, school and business that needs it has broadband. I say that from the bottom of my heart, and I know that every TD in the Rural Independent Group is of the same view. The Minister understands the problem because he too serves a rural constituency. Those who will speak in the debate this evening, be they from town or city, understand that there are problems with broadband provision, and all we seek is parity of esteem. We are not asking for favouritism or special treatment but parity of esteem with our colleagues, brothers and sisters throughout the Twenty-six Counties.

People doing their examinations and those trying to complete CAO forms are at a terrible disadvantage. I am aware of a case involving a person who had passed the examination to get into the Army some years ago but who for health reasons could not be accepted. There was a second round of applications about 18 months ago. This person went into a café in Carrick-on-Suir, in Tipperary, to ensure they would have broadband. Half way through the online interview the system crashed, and that person was denied the right to continue. She had failed her examination as far as the authorities were concerned. That is not right.

Farmers trying to complete application forms or draw down details of grant payments are at a disadvantage. If they are 30 seconds late submitting their applications they are excluded from that process. It is very important that we have broadband in place.

Business people are affected also. I am a business man who, but for the private providers, would be out of business. I set up a business in 1982 but everything changed with the onset of broadband. Everything has to be on the button and done in minutes. When we first got the fax machine we thought it was a wonderful tool but everything has progressed at a fast pace. It is wonderful, but there is no parity of esteem. We have had roll-out after roll-out of broadband services. I sat behind the Minister when he was a backbencher from 2007 to 2011, and it was nothing but roll-outs. We had them in the previous Government, but they all came to nothing in terms of the person who cannot use it. That is the bottom line. We are depending on the Minister and his officials to do something about that.

We are having this debate now, and I see an amendment has been tabled about the privatisation aspect. I do not care who delivers the service as long as somebody delivers it. It has to be delivered. It is like milk, butter or bread. People cannot live on the wind and without broadband they are at a distinct disadvantage. I dislike comparing this with food when many people are starving but it is as important as everyday kitchen essentials. We need broadband connectivity to the household for people from the cradle to the grave.

Doctors surgeries in rural Ireland are affected also. We have a doctor in our group who I am sure will relate to that. They cannot practise unless they have a high-speed broadband connection to transfer information to consultants back and forth. I refer to vital information on X-rays and so on. It is basic information if one is living in a city but for those who do not, it is different, although there are black spots in cities as well. It is vital that we have that service.

There are 42,207 premises in Tipperary which need to be covered by interventions under the national broadband plan. That is an enormous number. I do not wish to be parochial about this but I speak as a Tipperary TD. Until yesterday, 49% of those premises were not covered by the NBP intervention area, with the remaining 51% to be covered by commercial operators. I had them on to me all week, and I know the Minister met them yesterday. They were on to me again all day today. Those people must be saluted and supported. They cannot be pushed overboard and told their services are no longer required because they have been the lifeline for the countryside, and they must be brought in to whatever is going on. I know there is a tender process taking place but I do not want to see big conglomerates involved. According to the newspapers last night the number was whittled down to three. We have to have respect for those providers who took risks, put their hands in their pockets, put up temporary masts and did everything they could. My colleague, Deputy Michael Collins, had a meeting in west Cork last Saturday morning with a group of private people who are waiting to put their hands in their pockets to pay for this because it is valuable and vital. We must not allow those people to be disenfranchised.

The figures I gave the Minister demonstrate the extent of the broadband crisis, particularly in a rural county like Tipperary which has 3,167 townlands and where services need to be expanded and upgraded. I saw on the six o'clock news last night a report about a family from Clerihan, a village only three miles from Clonmel, which is a town of 20,000 people. We are fortunate with all the industry we have in the area through foreign direct investment and otherwise. Clerihan is three miles out the road from Clonmel. I canvassed there during the election but I nearly had to leave because people are so frustrated. Some of them relocated back from England and elsewhere. They want to work from home and set up small indigenous businesses. They are the people we need to drive the recovery and if they cannot do that without a proper broadband service it is a sad day for Ireland as a whole, especially now following Brexit. We need to be up and at it. We have to compete with the best in Europe and in the world. I will hand over to Deputy Michael Lowry.

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