Pádraig Ó Céidigh (Independent) | Oireachtas source

It is good to see the Minister of State, a fellow Galway man, and I thank him for coming to the House. I will speak on two main areas in respect of broadband and the earlier statement by the Minister, Deputy Naughten.

First, the World Economic Forum has rated Ireland as No. 24 in the world in global competitiveness. It is not bad but not near enough to where we should be. The biggest challenge we face, according to the World Economic Forum, is infrastructure and a big part of that is broadband, along with transport. The second factor is our tax rates. I know that the Government is working on that and I appreciate it. The third factor is Government bureaucracy and fourth is access to finance. These are four key areas for us to work on. This evening we are discussing broadband and the challenges we face.

Second, a minimum of 30 Mbps is the standard we are looking for. There are 15 counties in Ireland in which less than 50% of premises are connected to broadband at this level. For example, there is Mayo, Waterford, Galway, the midlands.