Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

There is much talk about plans but it worries me that the planning appears to be centred on Eir and Eir's strategy for the next year. Eir has a strategy for its own rural network and, before yesterday, apparently had a strategy for the rest of the rural network. I posted on Facebook yesterday, for my constituents, that Eir had pulled out of the national broadband plan. I view that as a disaster, as I am sure everybody does, but the reaction from members of the public was a little different. They have had such bad experiences with Eir, in various guises, over recent years that they are somewhat glad it is out of the process because they do not have confidence in it. When the Minister says that Eir will deliver these schools by the end of the year, it is almost passing the buck to a company that, let us be honest, has shown itself to be unreliable in the provision of broadband in rural areas. Yesterday was the pinnacle of that. I am very concerned that the answer to schools' broadband provision is Eir. The Department needs a far more comprehensive strategy involving the Department and other technologies that might be available. The Department should consider that urgently.

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