Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The national broadband plan contract was signed with National Broadband Ireland, NBI, in November 2019 to roll out a high-speed and future-proofed broadband network within the intervention area, which covers 1.1 million people living and working in more than 544,000 premises, including almost 100,000 businesses and farms, along with 695 schools. The plan will ensure that citizens throughout the entire country will have access to high-speed broadband services and that nobody is left without this vital service.

The national broadband plan network will offer users a high-speed broadband service with a minimum download speed of 500 Mbps from the outset. The high-speed broadband map, which is available at broadband.gov.ie, shows the areas that will be included in the national broadband plan's State-led intervention, as well as areas targeted by commercial operators. There are 273,548 premises in County Cork, of which 79,424 will be provided with high-speed broadband through the State-led intervention. Government investment in the county under the national broadband plan will amount to €314 million.

Despite the challenges presented by the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, NBI has made steady progress on initial works. I am advised by NBI that as of 26 January 2021, more than 166,000 premises in 26 counties had been surveyed, which is ahead of schedule. The next step for NBI is to develop network designs to deliver the new fibre-to-the-home network to these premises and substantial design work is under way. More than 13,000 premises have been surveyed to date in Carrigaline and Midleton and network designs completed. NBI crews have started initial works for the build in the more than 4,500 premises in the Carrigaline area, including Cullen, Templebreedy, Carrigaline, Ballyfoyle, Douglas, Ballyphehane, Glasheen, Mahon and Kilpatrick, while surveys have started in Ballydesmond, Kiskeam, Umeraboy, Knocknagree, Rineen, Cullen, Coolinarna, Millstreet, Hollymount and Caherbarnagh. Cobh is in the Midleton deployment area and NBI has confirmed that surveys have been completed there. Kiskeam is in the Rathmore area and NBI has confirmed that surveys in this area too are complete.

The first fibre-to-the-home connections have been made and, in a test-and-trial phase, in Carrigaline, County Cork and Cavan. Network build works continue and these areas will be subject to technical testing and validation prior to a wider release. Since 26 January, retailers have been able to resell the service, and householders in these areas will be able to order high-speed broadband provided via the NBI network. Further details are available on specific areas within Cork through the NBI website, which provides a facility for any premises within the intervention area to register its interest in being provided with deployment updates.

Broadband connection points, BCPs, are a key element of the NBP, providing high-speed broadband in every county in advance of the roll-out of the fibre to the home network. As of 30 January 2021, 260 BCP sites had been installed by NBI and the high-speed broadband service will be switched on in these locations through similar service provider contracts managed by the Department of Rural and Community Development for publicly available sites and by the Department of Education for schools. The following BCPs in County Cork are now connected and the public can avail of public Wi-Fi at them: Ballindangan, Lissvard community centre, Aghabullogue community centre, Castletownkenneigh community centre, Whitechurch community centre and T.O Park Labbamollaga.

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