Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to secure the delivery of gigabit-capable broadband to premises that are not included within a commercial rollout programme, Project Gigabit contract or other funded delivery pathway; and what plans her Department has to ensure that communities such as Churchstanton and West Buckland in Taunton and Wellington constituency have access to full fibre broadband.

Premises that are not included within a commercial roll-out plan or Project Gigabit contract or any other funded intervention are being considered by Building Digital UK (BDUK) for inclusion within a further Project Gigabit contract, to support achievement of the government's objective to achieve nationwide gigabit-capable broadband coverage by 2032.

Premises in Churchstanton are currently not within the scope of any commercial or publicly-funded plans. In West Buckland, some premises can already access a gigabit-capable broadband connection, and others are included in future commercial delivery plans. Many of the other premises in West Buckland are included in scope of a Project Gigabit contract which is being delivered by Openreach. The remaining premises in West Buckland and those in Churchstanton will be considered for inclusion within an existing or future Project Gigabit contract.

The current position for individual premises can be found via the government's broadband checker at www.gov.uk/guidance/check-your-gigabit-broadband-availability.