Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what plans he has to introduce a universal service obligation for broadband coverage; and if he will make a statement.

The Government is considering whether to implement a broadband Universal Service Obligation (USO) as one of a range of options for reaching the final 5% of the UK population who do not have access to broadband in order to ensure that no one gets left behind. No decisions have been taken at this stage.

Any broadband USO would have to comply with the European Universal Service Directive. The Directive does not specify a speed other than to indicate that it should be set at a level that is available to and used by the majority.