Collapse of National Broadband Plan no surprise- Murphy
Fianna Fáil TD for Roscommon/Galway Eugene Murphy has expressed his frustration
at the virtual collapse of the National Broadband Plan as the only remaining
provider SSE withdraws from the tender process.
“The withdrawal of SSE from
the tender process comes at no surprise but is a huge blow for rural Ireland. I
am calling on the Minister and the Government to reveal the Plan B that the
Minister has referred to in the past in the event of the withdrawal of all
interested parties who were participating in the tender process”
“Communities up and down the
country simply don’t believe what the Government is saying about its broadband
plans because every commitment to date has been broken. We have had nothing but
delay after delay with hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses still
waiting to be connected to the network.
“We also have appalling broadband connectivity in County Roscommon -A recent
reply to my PQ to Minister Naughten shows that there are over 38,500 premises
in County Roscommon of which almost half or 47% of premises are relying on the
State led Intervention under the NBP. Some 12% of Roscommon premises are
still due to receive high speed broadband under eir’s ongoing planned rural
deployment. Figures for Galway show that there are over 134,000 premises in
County Galway of which 29% of premises (c. 39,000) are relying on the NBP.
The remaining 71% of premises (c. 95,000) will be served by commercial
operators. 11% of Galway premises are still due to receive high speed broadband
under eir’s planned rural deployment.
“Accessing quality broadband
is a core requirement for small and medium sized businesses across the country.
Let’s be clear the provision of quality broadband for rural Ireland is not a
luxury, it is a matter of necessity for survival. Farmers cannot complete
online applications for payments, schools are unable to access educational aids
and businesses are unable to operate fully functional online services.
“I am sure that the Minister
and the Government have to realise that the delivery of a National Broadband
Plan is crucial and yes there is a cost factor, but not unlike the electricity
roll out from 1946 it was a worthwhile investment in our country’s
infrastructure. So I am calling on the Minister to go back to the companies who
already have the infrastructure in place such as the ESB and Eir and give them
a financial incentive to undertake this work and get the job done. Said Deputy
Murphy
