Declan Breathnach (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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Deputies Michael Moynihan and Seamus Healy are sharing four minutes for the next matter.

Michael Moynihan (Cork North West, Fianna Fail)
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Regarding the roll-out of broadband, a crisis is being experienced in communities which cannot access broadband. In terms of what is being trotted out as State intervention with respect to the national broadband plan, during the past four years there have been six different attempts announcing a new broadband plan. I was Opposition spokesperson on communication in the previous Dáil. The then Minister, former Deputy Pat Rabbitte, to great fanfare, announced in 2014 that there was a scheme and his successor, the former Minister, Alex White, had another scheme. We debated it across the floor of the Dáil in the context of State aids and it was to brought to Europe and passed by it. There was to be a procurement process and contracts signed. However, nothing happening about it. The latest announcement is that it will be further delayed than was envisaged. If somebody had said in 2013 or 2014 that we would still be talking about the national broadband plan in 2017, we would be laughed at. There is a crisis due to the lack of access. Deputy Martin spoke about this yesterday. He visited Kanturk and spoke to small business owners. We have apartheid across the country in terms of broadband access, not only for people in rural Ireland but for communities who do not have access to it.

The Minister announced that Eir will connect 300,000 homes but, as I understand it, that is boosting the connectivity they already have. The reality is that the communities, households and businesses which want broadband cannot access it. There does not seem to be any coherent strategic plan in place. Where is the bid for it and the development of State aid to intervene to ensure broadband is brought to every community? We are dividing the country on this in a major way. It is the same as what happened with the provision of telephones in the 1970s and electricity connection in the 1940s and 1950s. I ask the Minister to give us a realistic plan and not some palaver that the Department has trotted out that there will be something in 2019, 2021 or some time into the next century. We need urgent action on this now.

Séamus Healy (Tipperary, Workers and Unemployed Action Group)
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Central Statistic Office figures released recently show that County Tipperary had a number of unemployment blackspots. That is an area where there is more than 27% unemployment. The figure across the county was significantly higher than the national average. A number of electoral divisions, 26 in all, including places like Farranrory, Mullinahone, Fethard, Ballingarry, Littleton, Killenaule, Roscrea, Graigue, Poyntstown, Borrisokane, Finnoe, Ballyphillip, Kilcommon Templemore, had 5% unemployment above the national average. I give that detail before I move on to speak about the national broadband plan. Broadband is a vital piece of infrastructural development for industry and job creation.

A minimum of 30 Mbps is essential in order to work from home, to maintain and create employment and to establish new industries, in particular in rural areas. There is widespread concern and dismay that the Minister's recent announcement will delay further the implementation of the roll out of broadband in rural areas. This goes back to 2012 when it was initially announced. Deputy Naughten may be the third Minister to deal with this. It appears now that there will be no construction of broadband in rural areas until at least 2019 and that it will take a further four to five years to have the broadband structure in place in rural areas. There is wide spread concern and dismay on this. Will the Minister outline a realistic plan for broadband throughout rural areas?

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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In recent days there has been some ill-informed commentary in regard to the national broadband plan which surprised me. It is important that I state the factual position for the record of this House. The national broadband plan is a Government priority and will deliver high speed broadband to every citizen and business in Ireland. Our ambition is clear. It is to achieve 100% coverage of high speed broadband across Ireland, urban and rural. It is important to be clear that the objective of 100% coverage of high speed broadband will be achieved through a combination of accelerated investment by commercial telecoms operators and a State intervention for those parts of the country where there is no certainty that commercial operators will provide a service.

The Government's national broadband plan has been very successful in encouraging increased levels of investment by commercial operators. This in turn means that more people will have access to high speed broadband at an early date and also reduces the number of premises to be included in the State intervention. Ireland would not be experiencing the current level of investment by commercial operators were it not for the strong commitment by this Government to the national broadband plan. As a direct result of the Government’s commitment to deliver the national broadband plan we are witnessing a step change in the numbers of homes and businesses that are getting access to high speed broadband.

Over the next 76 weeks, farms, schools, homes, post offices and businesses in rural parts of Tipperary will get broadband access, and the vast majority of these will be fibre broadband. That is one in three premises in County Tipperary which did not have broadband until now.

In the constituency of Cork North West, there will be 6,188 premises. That is just short of one in three premises which did not have access to high speed broadband this time last year. That will happen within the next 76 weeks. The figures speak for themselves.

When I became Minister 12 months ago, only 52% of premises in Ireland had access to high speed broadband. Today that has increased to 61% and in the next 76 weeks over 77% of premises in Ireland will have access to high speed broadband. With commercial investment and the Government national broadband plan that will rise to more than nine in ten of premises in this country by the next 100 weeks. If Deputies are looking for evidence that the commercial sector is taking the Government’s commitment to the national broadband plan seriously, they do not have to look beyond the hundreds of millions in hard cash that industry continues to invest, with an average of €1.6 million being spent each day.

I will turn now to the procurement process being managed by my Department to select a bidder, or bidders, to build out a high speed broadband network to those areas where commercial operators will not provide a service. The procurement process is making good progress in parallel with the roll out by commercial operators. There is no question of the Government waiting for any commercial investment to conclude before shovels are put in the ground on the national broadband plan State intervention phase. I have stated this on several occasions so I do not understand the inaccuracies that some media are currently reporting on the timelines. In April of this year, the map for the procurement process was finalised and it now includes 542,000 premises. Last month bidders were invited to submit their detailed solutions by September. The detailed solutions stage of the procurement process is the final stage before moving to final tenders.

Michael Moynihan (Cork North West, Fianna Fail)
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I do not doubt the Minister for a moment. Coming from Roscommon, the Minister, Deputy Naughten, understands it. However, if one takes the figure of one in three that he quoted for Cork North West, that will be places such as Ballincollig, Macroom, Charleville, Kanturk. I am talking about other regions such as western Duhallow and other rural communities. The Minister will forgive me for being cynical but I have listened to Minister for four or five years saying they are making good progress. What does that mean? What does reporting on timelines mean? As society is moving on and as technology develops and proper broadband becomes a basic tool of life, it is even more serious than electricity or the phone, it is more like running water. I appeal to the Minister to grab this with both hands because it is a crisis. When people look at buying houses or sites, they want to know about broadband connectivity and when will it be in place. When I said I was raising this issue, many people said they do not even have mobile phone coverage in some areas of the constituency, never mind broadband. Good progress is not enough. The Minister needs to tell us what the timelines are because we have heard it all before.

Séamus Healy (Tipperary, Workers and Unemployed Action Group)
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The lack of high-speed broadband is squeezing the life out of rural Ireland. There is widespread concern and dismay that it might be delayed further. I welcome 15,000 premises, or the one third, which will get high-speed broadband within the next 18 months, but what about the other two thirds, the other 30,000? When will they get it? From reports and from a question to which the Minister responded, it suggests that the roll-out of broadband for that 30,000 will not commence until January 2019. Will the Minister confirm the position in regard to those 30,000 premises in Tipperary and the equivalent across the country? When will the work start and when will the installation commence and when will it be completed? We will be seven years on from the initial announcement of the national broadband plan.

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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To clarify, those 15,500 premises in Tipperary and the 6,188 in Cork North West are rural premises in very small villages and at crossroads and rural farmhouses. We are currently passing one house every minute of every working day. That momentum will continue until every premises in this country has access to high-speed broadband. I am determined to make sure this is fulfilled. Deputy Moynihan is right to be sick and tired of people promising dates. I am sick to the eye teeth about that. My focus is on delivery. We are delivering pure fibre broadband to these homes. The types of speed they have in New York are now available in isolated rural communities throughout this country. That will continue until every one of these premises get it.

Deputy Healy asked what will happen in the meantime, before these premises get it. That is a legitimate question. I have just come from the most recent mobile broadband and wireless task force meeting. As we speak, we are rolling out infrastructure in 4G and wireless broadband services. Two weeks ago, I made an announcement regarding Eurona Ireland. Imagine is rolling out wireless services across the country. This is happening as we speak. People are getting access to services.

4 o’clock

Every single possible operator will provide as many options to people both in the short and medium term. I am determined to ensure every single premises will get this as quickly as possible and not one day later than is absolutely necessary. I am putting as much pressure on as I can to ensure that both the commercial and non-commercial aspects of this proceed without any delays so people can get broadband.

I ask Deputies to consider the facts. Within the next 76 weeks, as Minister I will have delivered broadband to one in every four premises in this country. That is on foot of the actions I have taken as Minister. I intend to continue with this until every single premises has broadband.