Rural Broadband: Installation Debate
Full Debate: Read Full DebateDepartment: Department for Science, Innovation & Technology
Tim Farron
Main Page: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)Department Debates - View all Tim Farron's debates with the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology
Rural Broadband: Installation
Tim Farron Excerpts(1 day, 11 hours ago)
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Sir Ashley Fox
The hon. Member anticipates much of my speech, and I thank him for that intervention.
Unsurprisingly, in my survey those in larger villages reported the best service, and those in the most remote rural areas reported the worst.
Tim Farron (Westmorland and Lonsdale) (LD)
The hon. Member is making a really important speech, and I commend him for the survey he conducted. In Cumbria, many communities and homes that are within the scope of Project Gigabit are still going to be excluded from it because they are deemed too difficult to reach. The majority of those places will be upland farms, where the people are on less than minimum wage. Does the hon. Member agree that the people who produce our food and tend our beautiful landscapes have as much right to be connected to the internet as the rest of us?
Sir Ashley Fox
I agree with the hon. Gentleman, who anticipates a section of my speech on farmers. I am going to make a little progress, if I may.
Those in the most remote rural areas of my constituency reported the worst service. For example, residents of Broomfield rated their service at 2.6 out of 10; in Lyng, it was 2.2 out of 10; and in Durleigh, it was an average of just 1.5 out of 10. When I am out on the doorstep, access to reliable broadband is one of the most noticeable gaps between the experience of those in towns and of those in small villages.