Niamh Smyth (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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554. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the number of households and businesses waiting on the roll-out of the national broadband plan in counties Cavan, Monaghan and Meath and nationally, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7486/18]

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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The Government's National Broadband Plan (NBP) aims to ensure high speed broadband access (minimum 30 megabits per second) to all premises in Ireland, regardless of location. The NBP has been a catalyst in encouraging investment by the telecoms sector. Today 7 out of 10 of the 2.3 million premises in Ireland have access to high speed broadband. By the end of this year that number will rise to nearly 8 out of 10 premises and by 2020, 9 out of 10 premises or 90% of premises will have access to a high speed broadband connection. This will be achieved via a combination of commercial investment and a State led intervention.

Premises in the AMBER areas of my Department’s High Speed Broadband Map, which is available atwww.broadband.gov.ie,are included in the State Intervention Area under the National Broadband Plan (NBP).

The number of premises in the AMBER area in counties Cavan, Monaghan and Meath as well as nationally is outlined in the following table. 

My Department is in a formal procurement process to select a company who will roll-out a new high speed broadband network in the State intervention area. That procurement process is now at an advanced stage. When the procurement process reaches a satisfactory conclusion for Government, a contract will be awarded and the network rollout will commence.

In the interim, practical initiatives will continue to be addressed through the work of the Mobile Phone and Broadband Taskforce to address obstacles and improve connectivity in respect of existing and future mobile phone and broadband services.

Under this Taskforce, engagement between telecommunications operators and local authorities through the Broadband Officers is continuing to strengthen.  These Broadband Officers are acting as single points of contact in local authorities for their communities.  The appointment of these officers is already reaping rewards in terms of ensuring a much greater degree of consistency in engagements with operators and clearing obstacles to developing infrastructure.  There is a link to a list of these local Broadband Officers on my Department's website.