Patricia Ryan (Kildare South, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I looked at NBI's website earlier this week and the statistics on it are underwhelming. Almost 300,000 premises have been surveyed; 250,000 completed; more than 150,000 premises are under construction or constructed; and 55,000 premises are available for order. Apparently, 450 BCPs have been installed. However, we have learned from "Prime Time" in the past month or so that there are just 3,335 homes connected throughout the State. Progress has been painfully slow.

I spoke to a lady last week who had been searching for months for a rental property in the south Kildare area within her budget, which is a hard find. She finally found a home in the Lackagh area, but was unable to move in because the Internet speed was measured at 1.9 Mbps. The lady works from home for a large multinational company and needs a good connection to save a 90-mile round-trip commute to Dublin. The expected connection date for the premises is - wait for it - December 2026.

Rural dwellers cannot put their lives on hold for the next five years. The Government needs to get the finger out and take urgent action. Decent Internet speed is not just about streaming movies, although in many parts of County Kildare and Portarlington, County Laois, where trips to the cinema are difficult to make if one does not drive, entertainment is a relevant factor.

Businesses struggle to complete payroll, students struggle to submit assignments and community groups struggle to connect with their members due to poor broadband speeds. I had an email from a rural school last week that had recently taken delivery of a number of Chromebooks, due to its own fundraising, which is another story in itself. However, it is unable to use them due to the poor Internet speed in the area. Staff have also undertaken considerable upskilling to ensure the pupils' development of digital skills and literacy are enhanced and the school sourced Internet safety books for staff, parents and pupils from Barnardos.

It has done everything possible to ensure its pupils are supported. Unfortunately, it is let down time and again by its poor quality Internet connection. I have written to the Minister for Education on this and I am still waiting on a reply. The maximum speed available for the connection appears to be approximately 7 Mbps. If one teacher streams video content to his or her classroom, this has a detrimental impact on the ability of other classes to use the Internet. This is not acceptable in this day and age.

Schools must be prioritised for connection to high-speed broadband.

There is an increased use of Google Classroom and Apps such as Aladdin and Seesaw in our schools. This is a welcome development but can cause untold heartbreak for rural families who struggle to go online. In many parts of south Kildare, as the Ceann Comhairle will be aware, and Portarlington, we have a digital divide where rural dwellers are left behind and the Government is washing its hands of them. Sinn Féin did not favour the current set-up with the national broadband roll-out. At the time, we proposed using ESB Networks or another State agency with a track record in delivering large-scale infrastructure projects. Instead the Government, not surprisingly, chose the privatisation route, which is not delivering on its targets, will not be in public ownership and is removed from accountability that would have existed if Sinn Féin was in government. It is not good enough and it needs to change now.

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