Martin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

259. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources the status of discussions he has had with Eir on the timing and implementation of the Eir fibre broadband investment project; how that compares with proposed timing and roll-out of the State's national broadband programme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38594/15]

Alex White (Dublin South, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The High Speed Broadband Map 2016, published on 24th November 2014 () was developed by my Department to establish the National Broadband Plan (NBP) Intervention Areas.

This Map shows where access to high speed broadband services provided on a commercial basis are expected to be in place by the end of 2016 and where the Government may intervene to enable access to high speed broadband. The High Speed Broadband Map was subject to public consultation which closed in February 2015.

The planned period for the roll-out of the State Intervention is 2016 to 2020 and the Department has revised the investment period under assessment to also include investments in the period 2016 – 2020.

The Department is currently in the process of assessing future Next Generation Access (“NGA”) investment plans of commercial operators, including eir, to establish whether those operators have concrete, and credible, plans to roll out further NGA services by 2020. This process takes into consideration changes to investment plans by operators since the first High Speed Broadband Map 2016 was published and involves a detailed review of the proposals, including in particular the technical and financial aspects. A further consultation relating to the process for updating the 2016 High Speed Broadband Map was published by my Department on 19 October.

This exercise is expected to culminate in the publication of a new High Speed Broadband Map 2020 (the “Map”) in December 2015.