Tommy Broughan (Dublin Bay North, Independent) | Oireachtas source

If we look back 15 years ago, and I was a communications spokesperson at the time, we were examining exemplar projects abroad. I recall one involved the state of Alberta in Canada, which has a population similar to ours but is three or four times the physical size of the Republic. The Minister said there were 16 exemplars he can give where this roll-out took place. I would like to know more about those in terms of how successful they were and the cost of them. Were other states left holding the baby as we are fearful this State may be in 2023 or 2024 after the roll-out by this company?

We have all had to upskill in terms of IT, our offices and so on. We are familiar with the fast-changing nature of broadband and website developments. One of the key points the Secretary General, Robert Watt, and his colleagues made in the redacted letter is that technology is changing rapidly and we do not know what new and cheaper technological advances will be made in the coming decades that could make this particular model outdated or even obsolete. Is that not a major risk this country is taking and putting €2.5 billion beside the risk? A number of us heard President Trump talk about rolling out a 5G network for the whole of the continent of the United States, and the Minister would probably advise that this would require 400,000 masts at least to make that happen. Given the point Robert Watt made about the technology is so prescient and important, is there not a fundamental case for proceeding with the plan the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform has, which is the immediate procurement by the Department of Communications, Climate Acton and Environment for the 300 broadband connections and the 1,000 locations after that? The Minister said an office is being set up but why would the Department not deal with this directly? The staff in the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform seem to be indicating this would be a better plan and that we could watch developments as time proceeds, particularly after 2021 or 2022, to ensure we get the best value for money.

Is this not something the Minister is totally pre-empting, given the way technology is changing so dramatically? We are just beginning to get used to 4G and 5G is coming down the track, and we do not know what other parts of the spectrum the wireless companies are going to utilise. That is the second point. I will leave it at that for now.

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