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

It is happening. I have said before that my focus is on delivery not indicative dates. People in this country are sick and tired of being promised they would have broadband by a certain date but it has not happened. My priority is the people who have not got high-speed broadband at the moment. I am leaving no stone unturned to ensure that is delivered as quickly as possible. We have a core team within the Department of 39 people directly involved in the issue. The broader team involving external advisers is about 80 people. This is a 25-year contract. It is fundamentally important that we get it right, not just for the people who need broadband today but for the next generation and the generation after that. We need to make sure that we get it right once and for all and that we do not have any more hollow promises in relation to it.

In the interim I am working with the Minister for Rural and Community Development, Deputy Ring, to provide hot desks in rural communities where fibre is located. If people cannot have high-speed broadband of 1,000 Mbps in their own home they can have it in their own local community centre to enable them to work from there rather than being obliged to commute into the city. We are working with wireless and mobile operators to see how we can exploit the fibre that is already rolled out across the country to improve the existing services that are available so people have access to a broadband service before they have access to the high-speed broadband service.

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