Employment: Rural Employment Debate
Full Debate: Read Full DebateDepartment: Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Lord Palmer
Main Page: Lord Palmer (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)Department Debates - View all Lord Palmer's debates with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
(11 years, 5 months ago)
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Lord De Mauley
The noble Lord raises a very good point about broadband. I absolutely agree with him on that. The rollout of superfast broadband infrastructure is vital to boosting sustainable economic growth and creating jobs in rural areas. Online business, whether rural or urban, grow four to eight times faster than their offline counterparts. Broadband is a key government priority. We are working to deliver the best superfast broadband in Europe by 2015, backed by a £530 million government investment to support rural areas.
Lord Palmer
My Lords, what estimates does the Minister have in his department for the exploration of shale gas in the countryside of the United Kingdom?
Lord De Mauley
My Lords, I think that that is a bit wide of the Question, but more will become clear shortly.