Timmy Dooley (Clare, Fianna Fail)
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31. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources his plans to speed up the roll-out of the national broadband plan; if there is a timeframe on the urgent points identified in the implementation programme on mobile phone and broadband access document; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14098/17]

Timmy Dooley (Clare, Fianna Fail)
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I wish to ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment about his plans to speed up the roll-out of the national broadband plan; if there is a timeframe on the urgent points identified in the implementation programme on the mobile phone and broadband access document; and if he will make a statement on the matter.

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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The national broadband plan, NBP, aims to deliver high-speed broadband to all businesses and households in Ireland through a combination of commercial investment and State intervention in areas where commercial investment has not been fully demonstrated. The NBP has been a catalyst for an increased level of investment by commercial operators.  Since the publication of the NBP, investment by the commercial telecommunications sector has been considerable with over €2.5 billion spent in upgrading and modernising networks.  As a result, today, approximately 1.4 million premises or 61% of premises in Ireland can get high speed broadband of a minimum of 30 megabits per second.  Significant further investment is anticipated over the next two years.

My Department is running a procurement process to select a company or companies who will roll out a high speed broadband network within the State intervention area. Finalisation of the intervention area is the next key step in the procurement process. I expect this to happen in the coming weeks and it will allow bidders to prepare for the next stage of the procurement process, which is the submission by bidders of detailed solutions.  After the submission of detailed solutions, the procurement process will move to the final tenders and contract award stages.

A number of initiatives have been developed to speed up the roll-out of high-speed broadband. My Department will engage with winning bidder or bidders on the best roll-out strategy in order to target areas of particularly poor service, business needs and-or high demand and a prioritisation programme will be put in place in consultation with the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs. Two regional action groups have been established to work with local authorities, local enterprise offices and other relevant agencies to help accelerate broadband roll-out in rural Ireland.

The mobile phone and broadband task force has moved to the implementation phase.  The implementation programme on mobile phone and broadband access identifies 19 of the 40 task force actions as areas where immediate and direct action by Departments and State agencies can ensure accelerated benefits to consumers. Each of the actions and implementation programme has its own timeframe for delivery. A copy of the report is available on my Department's website.

Timmy Dooley (Clare, Fianna Fail)
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I am still not clear, and neither are those who seek the implementation of this plan, on when we can expect to see the roll-out begin, let alone be completed. The national broadband plan has been talked about since 2012, although I will not lay at the Minister's door responsibility for the tardiness with which successive governments have dealt with it. The Minister has been in office for almost a year, yet we still have no tender in place. People are absolutely frustrated as a result. It is impacting on the way in which people do business in 900,000 premises across the State. It is also impacting significantly on the way families live their lives. I am inundated every week by mothers and fathers whose children are unable to complete dissertations or access information required for college and course work. In addition, small and medium enterprises, and farmers, across the country have the same broadband connectivity problems.

As more and more services go on-line, the demands for broadband are increasing. Greater demand for access to these services requires greater band width, yet there is a poor level of service in so many areas. The Minister cannot allow this to continue so he will have to find a way to get this contract completed and begin the work. It is an emergency for many communities.

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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My focus is on delivery, not dates. I am very much focused on delivering this matter. The roll out of the national broadband plan has already started. Commercial companies are spending €1.7 million per day on foot of the plan. In the coming weeks we intend to make significant progress on that. I included in the programme for Government a mobile broadband and wireless task force due to the challenge in reaching some communities and some homes. That task force will have a significant impact on the delivery of 4G and wireless services over the coming 12 months.

Next month will see the auctioning off of the 3.6 gHz spectrum, which will provide additional bandwidth for wireless and mobile operators. That will help them to roll out their services and expand the services currently available. In tandem with that, I have allocated €8 million to RTE to release the 700 mHz spectrum.

They will start work on that this summer and that will facilitate us in rolling out 5G throughout the country.

Timmy Dooley (Clare, Fianna Fail)
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It seems the Minister raised the issue of spectrum auction. Will he confirm to the House that the criteria around the auctioning of the spectrum will concentrate more on the geographic spread rather than on the amount of money that can be generated for the State coffers? The Minister is well aware that, notwithstanding what different mobile companies advertise in terms of their coverage, the bulk of their service, as a result of previous auctions, concentrates on population. That is because the criteria were in the past based around the return to the State. We have seen the folly of that in terms of the poor coverage in many less densely populated areas but yet it is vitally important to provide cover to ensure access to emergency services etc. Will he confirm to the House that at last he has understood the necessity to look at the geographic spread rather than following the population dispersal?

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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Prior to becoming Minister I understood the difference between geographic and population. I have always insisted that we should be looking at geographic coverage. I have made my views quite clear on that, both publically and privately. In regard to the 3.6 GHz spectrum, the auction is slightly different in terms of its objectives. The country is broken into nine different areas, both urban and rural. It will facilitate the roll-out of wireless broadband across the country and it will assist the mobile operators in regard to backhaul capacity as well. It is structured in such a way as to do that.

The big issue is the next auction, which is the 700 MHz spectrum, which relates to 5G. It is my intention, and I will be pressing for it if at all possible, to ensure that is rolled out on a geographic rather than a population basis. The frequency of the 700 MHz spectrum allows for it to have far greater coverage. That would see high speed mobile broadband being provided right across this country. That is needed. I hope it will have the support of all sides of the House.