Lisa Chambers (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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408. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment when homes in County Mayo can expect to have broadband; the roll-out, plan and timeline of the national broadband plan; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38539/18]

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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In April 2017 I published an updated High Speed Broadband Map which is available on my Department's website atwww.broadband.gov.ie. This map shows the areas targeted by commercial operators to provide high speed broadband services and the areas that will be included in the State Intervention Area under the National Broadband Plan (NBP).

There are approximately 83,200 premises in Co Mayo. Approximately 36,700 fall within the AMBER area and will be served under the State led Intervention. Some 35,300 premises are in a BLUE area and are or will be served by commercial providers. Just over 11,200 premises are in the Light BLUE area and remain to be covered under eir’s 300,000 planned rural deployment.

Information on categories of specific premises can be accessed atwww.broadband.gov.ieby entering the relevant eircode into the High Speed Broadband Map. A copy of the Commitment Agreement underpinning eir's rural deployment plan is also available on my Department’s website www.dccae.gov.ie.I can confirm that data for Q2 2018 submitted by eir to my Department indicates that the company has passed some 175,000 premises nationwide as part of its ongoing deployment, including more than 5,000 premises in Co Mayo.

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, and is now evaluating the Final Tender submission received from the bidding consortium on 18 September 2018. This is a significant milestone as the NBP procurement process enters its final stage.

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

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