Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 238: To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources the steps he has taken to accelerate the provision of high speed broadband to the industrial, educational, health and financial services sectors; when the quality and availability of the service here will be on par with the best in Europe; the reason for the delay in reaching such targets; the action he has taken or proposes to take to address the issue; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14954/08]

Eamon Ryan (Dublin South, Green Party)
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The provision of broadband services is, in the first instance, a matter for the private sector. Broadband service providers operate in a fully liberalised market, regulated, where appropriate, by the independent Commission for Communications Regulation, ComReg. The role of the Government is to formulate regulatory and infrastructure policies to facilitate the provision of high quality telecommunications services by competing private sector service providers.

The widespread provision of broadband services continues to be a priority for the Government. In that regard my Department has undertaken initiatives to address the gaps in broadband coverage. These include providing grant-aid under the Group Broadband Scheme (GBS) and investment in Metropolitan Area Networks (MANs). Although broadband is now widely available in Ireland there are still some parts of the country where the private sector will be unable to justify the commercial provision of broadband services. These areas are being addressed by the National Broadband Scheme (NBS), which will provide broadband services to areas that are currently unserved and will ensure that all reasonable requests for broadband are met.

The first phase of the NBS procurement process (Pre-Qualification Questionnaire (PQQ)) is now complete, and four candidates pre-qualified to enter the next phase of the procurement process. Following the withdrawal of the IFA/Motorola Consortium as a candidate, the remaining three candidates have now commenced "Competitive Dialogue" with my Department and are developing their proposed solutions to meet my Department's requirements for the delivery of broadband to the unserved areas of the country. It is anticipated that a preferred bidder will be selected and appointed in July 2008, with roll out to commence as soon as possible thereafter.

My Department has prepared a Draft Policy Paper on Next Generation Broadband. The Paper reviews current communications infrastructure policy and analyses policy options in light of industry developments in relation to the optimum role for the Government in the planning and roll out of next generation broadband. In February of this year I convened a meeting of the expert International Advisory Forum to examine the Paper. The Forum critiqued draft options and recommendations on how to meet the challenges that lie ahead. The Forum members supported the broad trust of the document and they have provided valuable feedback. They offered some additional recommendations and advice on the future trends of the telecommunications and ICT industries and proposed that certain suggestions be explored further. The draft paper is currently being updated to take account of the Forum's contribution. It will be published shortly for public consultation.