Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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99. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the progress he and his Department continue to make towards the provision of high-speed, high-quality broadband throughout the country, with particular reference to ensuring an early link up between those areas currently having a reasonable service with the need to ensure maximum spread of service in the shortest possible term in order to facilitate the domestic and commercial markets, urban and rural; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27533/24]

Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party)
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Ireland's Digital Connectivity Strategy, published by my Department, sets ambitious targets, which include providing a Gigabit network to all households and businesses in Ireland by 2028 and access to 5G in all populated areas by 2030.

National Broadband Ireland (NBI) is currently rolling out a high speed and future-proofed broadband network. The intervention area covers over 1.1 million people living and working in over 560,000 premises, including almost 100,000 businesses and farms along with some 672 schools.

NBI are connecting circa 4,000 homes each month and expect to have passed in excess of 300,000 premises by the end of 2024.

I am advised by NBI that over 261,500 premises are passed across 26 counties and available for immediate connection. Over 85,00 premises are already connected to the National Broadband Plan’s high-speed broadband network.

The network roll-out for the National Broadband Plan (NBP) is divided into 227 (DAs) across the country. These typically measure approximately 25km in radius and cover 96% of Ireland’s landmass. The network is specifically designed based on the NBI network coming from the eir exchanges or the metropolitan area networks (MANs) which allows NBI to reach every premises quickly.

Along with the NBP intervention contract, progress is being made by commercial operators in expanding their next generation networks throughout the State and ensuring the targets set out in the Digital Connectivity strategy are achieved.