Verona Murphy (Wexford, Independent)
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62. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment his plans on the fast-tracking of the Nation Broadband Plan; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25252/20]

Verona Murphy (Wexford, Independent)
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The pandemic has highlighted the importance of good and reliable broadband to ensure that all citizens, in all parts of Ireland, can avail of remote working, education and other essential online services. Can the Minister outline the plans and the fast-tracking of the national broadband plan, and can he make a statement on the matter?

Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party)
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The Covid 19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of good reliable broadband to ensure that citizens across Ireland can avail of remote working, education and other essential online facilities. This is reflected in the commitments in the programme for Government where delivery of the national broadband plan will be a key enabler to many of the policies envisaged particularly around increased levels of remote working. The programme for Government has also committed to seek to accelerate the roll-out of the national broadband plan.

The national broadband plan State-led intervention will be delivered by National Broadband Ireland, NBI, under a contract signed last November. The national broadband plan network will offer users a high-speed broadband service with a minimum download speed of 500Mbps from the outset. This represents an increase from the 150Mbps committed to under the contract. The deployment plan forecasts premises passed in all counties within the first two years and over 90% of premises in the State having access to high-speed broadband within the next four years. As of 15 September, design work is complete or ongoing in target townlands across 21 counties and steady progress is being made with over 91,000 premises surveyed to date. By year end, NBI expects to have completed some 120,000 surveys. This survey work is feeding into detailed designs for each deployment area and laying fibre should commence shortly with the first fibre to the home connections expected around December this year.

While substantial progress has been made to date, the Covid 19 pandemic has had an impact on the delivery of the fibre network. The extent of this impact is currently being assessed and NBI has committed to put in place measures to mitigate the impact in as far as possible.

My Department is engaging with NBI to explore the feasibility of accelerating aspects of the national broadband plan roll-out to establish the possibility of bringing forward premises which are currently scheduled in years 6 and 7 of the plan to an earlier date. These discussions are on-going. Any changes proposed will require detailed technical, commercial and financial analysis.

Exploring the potential to accelerate the network roll-out is being undertaken in parallel with the measures required to mitigate delays arising as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic which must be the primary focus at this juncture.

Verona Murphy (Wexford, Independent)
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I have the reply.

Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party)
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I will discuss local matters in County Wexford. I will happily put the rest of the reply on the record for the benefit of other Deputies.

The national broadband plan is seeking to accelerate the development of this scheme. It has been delayed somewhat, as I said in my previous reply, due to Covid. Part of the difficulty is that some contractors from the UK have not been able to come to Ireland and the ability to provide a safe environment in which people can carry out work is a challenge. There are extensive plans to accelerate the plan.

To bring it back to the Deputy's county, some 22,000 houses out of the 82,900 premises in Wexford are in an area which will be provided with high-speed broadband through State-led intervention. Over 3,745 of those premises have already been surveyed to date. That involves people mapping exactly which poles and infrastructure in local areas could be used. I could list a range of townlands which have been surveyed in that way.

Deputy Murphy will also be aware that part of the plan involves the development of broadband connection points as the first phase. That involves the fast-tracking of the delivery of services. In Wexford, five sites have been located: Hook Head Lighthouse; Ballyfad Community Centre; Askamore Community Childcare Centre; Marshalstown GAA Club; and St. Mary's GAA Club. Four have already been connected as part of the national broadband plan and will be connected by the retail service provider shortly.

Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent)
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I ask for co-operation so that we can get through the questions with as many Deputies as possible.

Verona Murphy (Wexford, Independent)
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As I said, I received the Minister's written response but I found the answer was vague on timelines and the worst affected areas. I could also name many townlands in Wexford. When a statement includes the phrases "explore the feasibility of accelerating aspects of the national broadband plan roll out" or the "possibility of bringing forward premises currently scheduled for year six or seven to an earlier date", those words mean one thing to me, namely, that it will never happen.

I know children who will have left the education system by the time we are at year six or seven. How does the Government propose to tell colleges that they should educate children at home to safeguard them from Covid when they do not even have the elearning facilities to do so? It is devastating for their educational outcomes. A local Wexford website, Wexfordtoday.com, reported today that 51% of those working from home had experienced technical issues due to poor quality broadband.

Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party)
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The Deputy is correct. The reason we are looking to accelerate and explore the national broadband operators is because the Covid pandemic showed the importance of remote working and the urgency of us providing that at this time.

We are considering accelerating aspects of the plan. It has been scheduled, after several years of preparation, to be a six and seven year process. Those discussions are very serious and have been committed to on the basis of us wanting to see the project accelerated. It requires detailed technical, commercial and financial analysis. If it was easy in the first place, it would not have been set out as a six or seven year contract.

It will require a lot of analysis to accelerate any elements of it. I will not promise that until we know that it can be delivered in real time. The Covid pandemic has created difficulties in terms of getting access to contractors who would do the actual work. It brings the imperative to accelerate but also difficulties in that regard at the same time.

Verona Murphy (Wexford, Independent)
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We want the businesses in rural Ireland to stay there. If 51% have said that they are being impeded in their ability to work at home that is a huge problem. The written response stated that the pandemic has had an impact on the delivery of the fibre network. The Minister has explained that is because we cannot get people to install it and people cannot travel from England. People are beginning to see that excuse as worse than GDPR. There are now three sets of excuses being used when it comes to Government contracts, GDPR, Covid and, I assume, Brexit.

Any changes that are proposed would require detailed technical, commercial and financial analysis. Will the cost of not having broadband for those who require it be included? Those affected may include a business that is trying to complete customs documentation for Brexit or a student who may feel his or her life hangs in the balance if he or she cannot receive online tuition.

Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party)
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Such cases are the reason the State is putting money into this project. We have had differences in the House in terms of how it should be delivered and what the exact contact arrangements should be.

I did not hear that and in my role in opposition I was always in support of the need for the plan at significant cost, but I believe it is worthwhile. The excuses the Deputy has mentioned as to Covid-19 were a reality. We all know that the working world did in many instances come to a halt because protecting workers’ safety came first. That is not an excuse, it is a reality.

The commitment and the desire to meet the objectives of the national broadband plan are absolutely concrete and clear. The desire to try to accelerate it, in part by what has happened with Covid-19 and the importance of having connectivity for people working remotely, is very real. I am committed to doing everything I can to try to do that, in Wexford and everywhere else.

Additional information not given on the floor of the House

The Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of good, reliable broadband to ensure that citizens across Ireland can avail of remote working, education and other essential online facilities. This is reflected in the commitments in the programme for Government where delivery of the national broadband plan will be a key enabler to many of the policies envisaged particularly around increased levels of remote working. The programme for Government has also committed to seek to accelerate the roll-out of the national broadband plan.

The national broadband plan State-led intervention will be delivered by National Broadband Ireland, NBI, under a contract signed last November. The network will offer users a high speed broadband service with a minimum download speed of 500 Mbps from the outset and represents an increase from the 150 Mbps committed to under the contract. The deployment plan forecasts premises passed in all counties within the first two years and over 90% of premises in the State having access to high speed broadband within the next four years. As of 15 September, design work is complete or ongoing in target townlands across 21 counties and steady progress is being made with more than 91,000 premises surveyed to date. By year end, NBI expects to have completed some 120,000 surveys. This survey work is feeding into detailed designs for each deployment area and laying fibre should commence shortly with the first fibre to the home connections expected around December this year.

While substantial progress has been made to date, the Covid-19 pandemic has had an impact on the delivery of the fibre network. The extent of this impact is currently being assessed and NBI has committed to put in place measures to mitigate the impact in as far as possible.

My Department is engaging with NBI to explore the feasibility of accelerating aspects of the NBP roll out to establish the possibility of bringing forward premises which are currently scheduled in years six and seven of the plan to an earlier date. These discussions are ongoing. Any changes proposed will require detailed technical, commercial and financial analysis.

Exploring the potential to accelerate the network roll-out is being undertaken in parallel with the measures required to mitigate delays arising as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic which must be the primary focus at this juncture.