Ruairi Ó Murchú (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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216. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment if there are plans to accelerate the roll-out of the National Broadband Plan; the engagement there has been with National Broadband Ireland in relation to same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39174/22]

Ossian Smyth (Dún Laoghaire, Green Party)
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The National Broadband Plan (NBP) State led Intervention will be delivered by National Broadband Ireland (NBI) under a contract to roll out a high speed and future proofed broadband network within the Intervention Area which covers 1.1 million people living and working in almost 560,000 premises, including almost 100,000 businesses and farms along with some 679 schools.I am advised by National Broadband Ireland (NBI) that, as of 1 July 2022, over 312,800 premises are design completed and over 70,700 premises can order or pre-order a high-speed broadband connection across 23 counties. NBI has further advised that over 63,600 premises are passed with a high speed fibre broadband service across 23 counties and available for immediate connection. Construction is complete or underway across 26 counties demonstrating that the project is reaching scale. To date, the level of connections is increasing on a daily basis and is in line with projections with some areas exceeding expectations.

My Department has worked with NBI to agree an Updated Interim Remedial Plan (UIRP) which recalibrated the targets for 2022 to take account of the knock on effects of the Covid-19 pandemic and other delays to the programme. The revised target is 102,000 premises passed by the end of January 2023 (cumulative). My Department continues to work closely with NBI to determine the targets for 2023 and this target will be agreed later this year.

NBI are implementing a number of measures to help lessen the impact that delays have had on the rollout. Such measures include:- Increasing the rate of pole replacement and duct remediation per month

- Bringing in additional NBI resources

- Earlier procurement of materials used in the build stages

- Bringing in additional subcontractors.

The focus will continue to be on ensuring that the NBI build programme gets back on track and is gaining momentum month on month. With regard to engagement with NBI, my Department as the contracting authority manages all of the elements of contract governance and engages with NBI on an ongoing basis across all elements of the programme to deliver the new high speed broadband network, including plans for acceleration.