John Brassil (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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36. To ask the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht the responsibilities that are to transfer to her Department in respect of rural broadband; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [13278/16]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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Delivering the national broadband plan is a top priority for the Government, as reflected in the programme for a partnership Government. The allocation of new responsibilities at Cabinet level signals the Government's firm intention to address broadband and other telecoms challenges in rural Ireland. To this end, I will be working closely with the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources to deliver key elements of the national broadband plan and to accelerate and prioritise the roll-out of the programme in rural areas.

Under the new arrangements, the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources will continue with the procurement process for the State broadband intervention, which commenced in December 2015. The next stage in that process is to qualify potential bidders and to invite those short-listed to engage in detailed formal dialogue. Meanwhile, my Department will focus on establishing county-regional broadband task forces in which local authorities, local enterprise offices, Leader groups and other relevant agencies will immediately engage with communities and the telecoms industry in order to eliminate delay factors in advance and enable effective rural broadband delivery once a contract has been awarded under the procurement process.

As committed to in the programme for a partnership Government, within the first 100 days a mobile phone and broadband task force will be established, co-chaired by my Department and the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources. It will include other relevant Departments, ComReg, the County and City Management Association, relevant agencies and the telecoms industry. The task force will address existing barriers in the areas of infrastructure planning, road opening-reinstatement and environmental consents, industry investment and any other measure that could address telecommunications deficits in rural Ireland.

Additional information not given on the floor of the House

The two Departments will also establish a joint working group to ensure that the procurement and roll-out planning are progressed in parallel and as a priority.

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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It seems that the Minister has been pushed off the ball-----

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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No.

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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-----and that the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources has said: "Hands off broadband". As the Minister with responsibility for rural development, does she agree that 30 Mbps is no longer high-speed broadband and that the only solution is the provision of fibre broadband to every home and business in the country? Will the latter be the policy of the Minister's Department?

What role will the county and regional broadband task forces have if the contract is awarded to eir or Vodafone-ESB? My understanding is that as neither would require wayleaves, given that both already have them, the talk of ancillary works and facilitating planning is a nonsense. Is it just a fig leaf to cover up the embarrassment of the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, which made a mess of this situation, not letting go of the job?

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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A procurement process is ongoing and I am working closely with the Minister, Deputy Naughten, on this matter. It is important that the procurement process proceed. As Deputy Ó Cuív knows, it is a complicated one. Approximately five consortia will bid for three lots. This process will deliver the national broadband plan.

Where I come in is in the rural aspect. Once the tender has been awarded, responsibility for the rural elements falls to my Department. In the meantime, there is much that I can do with local authorities to prepare for the national broadband plan once it is ready to be rolled out. I will meet the local authorities' chief executives shortly to determine what roadblocks must be cleared away. What everyone in rural Ireland wants, including the Deputy and me, is broadband. That is the most important thing.

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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I beg to differ, as the Minister avoided my simple question. I do not want broadband. I want fibre broadband. Does the Minister agree that 30 Mbps is no longer considered high-speed broadband and that the only future-proof technology is fibre? Does she agree that the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources should stop messing about with 30 Mbps and opt instead for providing fibre to every home and business? These are simple questions. The Minister now has responsibility for rural development. What part of the national broadband plan does not relate to rural Ireland? My understanding is that urban areas are to be left to the market.

Regarding mobile telephony, will the task force that the Minister is setting up be able to recommend to the Government that it should, if necessary, make money available to the telecoms industry, having taken much money from it via licences and required a low threshold of coverage, so that the industry ensures that every road and house in the State is covered by mobile telephony as is required and as is the case in Scandinavian countries, which have sparser populations than we do?

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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I am just getting my head around this brief, but I understand 30 Mbps will be the minimum.

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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Does the Minister believe that is good enough? Is it high-speed broadband by her definition?

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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I understand it will be the minimum.

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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Is it high-speed broadband by the Minister's definition?

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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I cannot say there will be fibre broadband to every home. There is a procurement process ongoing. When one is putting something out to tender, I do not know whether one can state the specific type of broadband one wants.

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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What about a gigabit?

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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I will not go into the detail because I cannot give the Deputy a definitive answer. I will be better able to answer whenever the responsibility is transferred to my Department.

Regarding the county and regional broadband task forces, there is a lot we can do with what we have. People want to know when they can have broadband. Under the national broadband plan, broadband is now expected to be rolled out until June 2017. There is much we can do in the meantime. I am a strong believer in communities working together and clustering whereby they can come together and make an application for broadband, if there is the critical mass.