Niamh Smyth (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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1053. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the status of the roll out of the national broadband plan; and if his attention has been drawn to the fact that businesses in counties Cavan and Monaghan are suffering, students cannot access high speed Internet in many areas to complete their studies and public services are also impacted due to poor broadband service. [36578/18]

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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There are approximately 42,000 premises in Cavan. Approximately 17,000 (40%) fall within the AMBER area of the High Speed Broadband Map which is available at www.broadband.gov.ieand will therefore be served under the State led Intervention. Approximately 20,000 (49%) premises are in a BLUE area and will be served by commercial providers, while approximately 5,000 (11%) are LIGHT BLUE and fall to be served by eir's planned rural deployment. Of the approximately 32,800 premises in Monaghan, approximately 15,600 (48%) are in the AMBER area, approximately 15,500 (47%) are in BLUE and approximately 1,700 (5%) are in LIGHT BLUE area.

Information on the categories of specific premises can be accessed on my Department’s website www.broadband.gov.ieby entering the relevant eircode.

Information on eir's rural deployment is available at . A copy of the Commitment Agreement underpinning eir's rural deployment plan is available on my Department’s website www.dccae.gov.ie.  eir continue to pass premises as part of this deployment.  As of Q2 2018, eir passed more than 5,600 premises in Cavan and over 3,200 premises in County Monaghan with further premises to be passed as part of the rollout in these counties. 

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 in its closing stages.

For those premises currently awaiting access to high speed broadband, 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. The Department of Rural and Community Development maintain a list of Broadband Officers, a link to which is available on my Department's website at