Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent) | Oireachtas source

To deal with the Deputy's specific concerns about the USO, we have 26 years to get this right and neither he nor I will need to worry about the issues he has raised. It is my intention to have matters set in train long before then. The USO will not affect 96% of the country, geographically, for 26 years. In the intervening period the NBP will effectively provide for a USO. It is our determination to ensure every premises outside the blue areas which are mainly urban will have direct access to high-speed broadband within the next five years. The issue will arise in the shorter term in urban, or blue, areas. Even within a couple of miles of where we are standing, individual homes and premises are unable to secure a high-speed broadband connection. We hope that in providing for a USO we will deal with that issue in the short term, but it will not arise for the people of Cavan and Monaghan until the contract under the NBP expires. It is my determination and that of the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Deputy Heather Humphreys, to ensure premises in Cavan, Monaghan, Roscommon, Galway and everywhere else will have a high-speed broadband within that period.

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