Jennifer Carroll MacNeill (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I totally understand that, Senator. We must strike a balance between providing consultation but ensure there is no capacity to block or delay it because these things do need to be delivered.

On the questions about whether they are all needed and juxtaposed on the same street or whether they need to be spread out, and what coverage is being provided and by what provider, those are normal transparent pieces of information that people should be able to expect.

I agree with what the Senator said about the fee. It seems unduly low from a commercial perspective, given the benefits that will accrue to a commercial provider. I would always look at fees in the context, particularly on the commercial space and there are such long-standing benefits from the erection of telecommunication infrastructure. More broadly, the roll-out of the broadband plan would benefit from greater consultation between the different providers regarding putting down fresh ducts every time something is opened but I appreciate that I am out of time.