Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I mean no disrespect to the Minister of State but I am disappointed that neither the Minister responsible for his area nor his junior Minister is present to take this debate. That demonstrates the emphasis the Department is putting on the provision of broadband in rural Ireland.

Over the past five years, the number of broadband subscriptions in the country has increased from 600,000 to almost 1.7 million. Competition in the broadband market has begun to heat up in recent months with eircom emerging from examinership in June, UPC upgrading its current services and the recent announcement that the ESB will enter the market. This has resulted in improved services for many urban dwellers but a digital divide is emerging between rural and urban areas. The Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources has failed to address this matter with only 25% of homes targeted in its rural broadband scheme connecting to a broadband service. The scheme provided no subsidy for householders who wanted to get connected; it simply put them in touch with a company that was prepared to supply it for a fee.

EUROSTAT, the European statistics agency, found only 67% of Irish households had a broadband connection in the second quarter of 2013. This is well below the EU average of 76%. However, this figure is disputed, as broadband lobby group, Ireland Offline, said it is much worse. Its spokesman, Eamonn Wallace, says the EUROSTAT figure includes mobile broadband or 3G as well as satellite broadband, which he claims should not be classified as broadband. He says the speeds provided by 3G and satellite are barely fast enough even to book a flight. There is an urgent need to identify blackspots. For example, villages such as Ballinacarrigy, Ardagh, Legan, Rosemount, Castletown Geoghegan, Dysart, Monalee, Rathconnell and others in my constituency that are more than 6.5 km from a large town have no access to broadband.

Broadband is not a luxury. It is a critical utility for householders and businesses. The Government talks regularly about supporting businesses in their communities. There are many communities outside the Pale and outside county towns. The Government needs to come forward early in the new year with a proper plan to prioritise and identify blackspots and to ensure it is attractive for broadband providers to service rural communities. It is not economically feasible for providers to furnish broadband in these areas. However, people cannot work from home and they urgently need access to this critical infrastructure. I look forward to the Minister of State's contribution.

Alex White (Dublin South, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to address the House on this matter on behalf of my colleague, the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources and I thank the Deputy for raising it.

Ireland's telecommunications market has been liberalised since 1999 and has developed into a well regulated market, supporting a multiplicity of commercial operators providing services over a diverse range of technology platforms. The State is not a service provider in this market and can only intervene in cases of demonstrated market failure. Considerable progress has been made in recent years in both coverage and speeds of national broadband infrastructure. A combination of private investment and State intervention, including the national broadband scheme and the rural broadband scheme, means that Ireland has met the European Commission digital agenda target of having a basic broadband service available to all areas by the 2013 deadline. The focus must now turn to accelerating the roll out of high speed broadband.

Current Government policy in this regard was adopted last year with the publication of the national broadband plan. The plan commits to the delivery of high speed broadband across the country. Delivery of this commitment is to be achieved through a combination of a State led investment in those areas where it is evident that the market will not deliver and by ensuring that the environment in right to maximise investment by the private sector. I am pleased to advise the Deputy that since the publication of the plan there is evidence that industry is investing beyond the targets to which it originally committed. In this regard, eircom has extended its plans for the roll out of high speed services with speeds of up to 100 mbps to be delivered to 1.4 million homes. UPC has also increased its minimum and top speed products to 120 mbps and 200 mbps, respectively. Additionally, mobile operators are rolling out enhanced product offerings with Meteor and Vodafone having launched 4G mobile broadband services. Vodafone is also upgrading its 3G services to provide nationwide 3G coverage. Other operators continue to invest and Sky has entered the broadband market, offering services over the eircom network.

Despite these welcome developments, many towns, villages and communities, particularly in rural Ireland, will receive little of this investment and the Deputy has drawn attention to that. It is accepted that Ireland's widely dispersed population and topography means it is simply not viable for the commercial sector to provide services in some areas. In an effort to address the unacceptable digital divide between rural and urban areas, the Minister's Department is engaged in intensive technical, financial and preparatory work to define the scope of the State-led investment which will facilitate the widespread availability of reliable and guaranteed high speed broadband.

In parallel, a comprehensive mapping exercise of current and anticipated investment by the commercial sector is advancing. This exercise will identify where the market is expected to deliver high speed broadband services over the coming years and consequently the precise areas that will need to be targeted by the State-led investment. A full procurement process must be designed and EU state aid approval must be obtained to progress this investment. The procurement process for the approved intervention will be carried out in accordance with EU and Irish procurement rules and it is expected that it will be launched in 2014.

Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State the reply. He stated: "The State is not a service provider in this market and can only intervene in cases of demonstrated market failure."

I am concerned about situations where market failure is demonstrable. Unfortunately, such failures have occurred in large parts of rural Ireland. It is welcome that the Department is preparing proposals to address the issue. Given the size of Ireland and its dispersed population, it is not economically attractive for service providers to supply the aforementioned villages. However, we need to prioritise this work. This issue has been ongoing since the first rural broadband scheme was rolled out in 2008. At the end of 2013 too many areas continue to have poor broadband services. It cannot simply be a question of identifying areas and telling people to deal with this or that provider. The services need to be affordable. I am fortunate to have opted for satellite broadband, but it cost €300 or €400 to have it installed and the service costs €50 per month. Many people cannot afford such a service. When areas are identified, we need to ensure the provision is effective and affordable. I ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources to revert to me early in the new year with a clear timeframe for when the work will be completed in order that we can tell people when services will be delivered to them.

Alex White (Dublin South, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The Deputy raises an important issue and I will relay his comments to the Minister, Deputy Pat Rabbitte. I know from discussing the issue with him that he is prioritising these matters.

In addition to the State-led investment which will facilitate the widespread availability of reliable and guaranteed high-speed broadband, the national broadband plan also commits to a range of actions that will facilitate the more efficient roll-out of infrastructure, including addressing planning and road opening challenges, assisting in getting citizens online and more small businesses in Ireland transacting online, measures relating to spectrum policy and maximising the use of State assets, where possible. In this regard, I am pleased to advise the Deputy that the Minister has published the ESB (Electronic Communications Networks) Bill 2013 which will provide an explicit legal basis to enable the ESB to engage in the business of electronic communications networks and electronic communications services either by itself or in conjunction with another company. The legislation will allow the ESB to use its network infrastructure to deliver fibre services to the telecommunications market. The potential to use its considerable network to deploy fibre will contribute to the commercial deployment of broadband services. Through implementation of the national broadband plan, the Government is committed to ensuring all parts of Ireland will have access to high-speed broadband, with a view to ensuring all citizens and businesses can participate fully in and maximise the benefits of a digitally enabled economy and society.