Margaret Murphy O'Mahony (Cork South West, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

356. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the number of premises in south-west County Cork connected to high speed broadband in each quarter from March 2018 to date; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22387/19]

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The National Broadband Plan aims to ensure that every home, school and business in Ireland has access to high speed broadband. This is being achieved through a combination of commercial investment across the country, and a State intervention in those areas where commercial operators acting alone are unlikely to invest.

There are 52,673 premises in the constituency of Cork South-West.

Since Q1 2018, the number of premises with access to high-speed broadband in the constituency has increased by 2,696, a 4% increase. In total, the number of premises in Cork South-West with access to high speed broadband is now 21,922, which equates to 41% of all premises in the county. Another 9% will be served by eir under that company’s ongoing rural deployment of a high speed broadband network.

The remaining 26,195 homes, schools and businesses in the constituency of Cork South-West will receive access to high speed broadband under the National Broadband Plan State intervention.

In April 2017 my Department published an updated High Speed Broadband Map, which is available at . 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. The Map is colour coded and searchable by address or Eircode.

· The AMBER areas represent the target areas for the proposed State led Intervention under the NBP.

· The BLUE areas are where commercial providers are either currently delivering or have plans to deliver high speed broadband services.

· The LIGHT BLUE areas are where eir is in the process of deploying high speed broadband to 300,000 premises on a commercial basis.

Details of access to high speed broadband in Cork South-West in each quarter from Q1 2018 to Q4 2018 are set out in the following table.

In accordance with the April 2017 Commitment Agreement signed between eir and my Department, my officials engage regularly with eir in relation to its ongoing rural fibre deployment.

According to the latest figures for Q4 2018 provided by eir to my Department the company has passed over 225,000 premises as part of this deployment.

The rate of take up along eir's 300k deployment has increased throughout 2018 and is expected to increase further as eir proceeds to pass and connect further premises every month and as awareness of the availability of high speed broadband improves and retailers offer a choice and variety of communications packages over the network.

It is anticipated that eir's 300k roll out will conclude in mid 2019.