Dominic Hannigan (Meath East, Labour)
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To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the grants being provided to broadband suppliers to ensure that their services are connecting to schools in rural areas; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47662/12]

Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)
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Under the schools broadband access programme the Department provides for the supply of internet connectivity for all recognised primary schools and those post primary schools not connected under the 100 mbps programme.

All contracts under the schools broadband access programme were recently re-tendered under a public procurement competition. As a result of this the number of service providers has been expanded from six to 13, with the aim of ensuring that where available similar levels of service would be provided to all schools, where a certain level of service was not available for a particular school the next best solution was awarded. Services were not awarded on the basis of a school's location but on the basis of the most appropriate solution for that school. These contracts were signed in the last two months and the migration of schools onto the new services is currently underway. In 2012 it is expected that service providers will be paid approximately €3.7 million for the provision of this service.

A working group comprising representatives from the Department, HEAnet and the Department of Communications and Natural Resources has recommended a strategy for the roll out of 100 mbps to all post primary schools. The national roll-out will be completed over three stages with 202 schools being connected by the end of October 2012, a further 200 being connected next year and the remaining 250 schools being connected in 2014.

Dominic Hannigan (Meath East, Labour)
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To ask the Minister for Education and Skills when a school (details supplied) in County Meath may expect to receive faster broadband; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47665/12]

Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)
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Under the schools broadband access programme the Department provides for the supply of internet connectivity for all recognised primary schools. All contracts under the schools broadband access programme were recently re-tendered under a public procurement competition. As a result of this the number of service providers has been expanded from six to 13, with the aim of ensuring that where available that a preferred solutions would be awarded to a school. These contracts were signed in the summer and the migration of schools onto the new services is currently underway.

The Department is aware of the difficulty that some schools, such as Culmullen National School, have with their broadband service. Through the public procurement process the Department has sought as far as possible to reduce the reliance on satellite services and the number of schools reliant on a satellite connection has fallen from approximately 1,800 in 2005 to approximately 340 at present. Satellite connections and some other slower connections have only been awarded where no other solution was proposed and contracts for these connections have only been awarded for one year. These schools will be re-tendered next summer and in the interim the Department will liaise with service providers to try and ensure that where possible improved connections will be made available.