Call for superfast broadband for all businesses and homes

Households and businesses in North Yorkshire’s rural communities blighted by poor internet connections have been told the Government will be petitioned to ensure they are given access to better broadband links.

More than 200,000 households and businesses have benefited from an ambitious broadband project overseen by North Yorkshire Council, which has seen more than £100m invested in superfast internet connections during the past decade.

The Government is now overseeing the national Project Gigabit programme, with £5bn in funding for the roll-out of gigabit broadband to the hardest to reach premises in the country. This equates to about five million properties, mostly in rural areas.

North Yorkshire Council leader, Councillor Carl Les, has urged the Government to ensure the remaining 11,000 properties in the county without decent internet connections are linked to superfast broadband networks.

Cllr Les, who is also a board member for the NYnet broadband company which is owned by the local authority and has managed the Superfast North Yorkshire programme, said: “A great deal of work has been undertaken in recent years to ensure there are far better connections for tens of thousands of people in North Yorkshire.

“I would urge the Government to build on the work that has been already undertaken by ourselves here in the county and make sure every home and business has access to superfast broadband connections.

“We cannot have a technology divide between our urban and rural areas, which means you are disadvantaged simply by where you live for decent access to the internet.”

The fourth and final element of the Superfast North Yorkshire project came to an end earlier this year, with the vast majority of properties in the county now on the superfast broadband network.

Executive member for open to business, Cllr Mark Crane, whose responsibilities include broadband, said: “The importance of having access to superfast broadband cannot be underestimated, as it now part of everyday life for communities and businesses across the nation.

“We are committed to ensuring that our local economy flourishes and that business owners based in the county are able to compete effectively.

“To do that, every home and business has to have superfast broadband, and the Government must ensure that this becomes a reality.”

Money for the Superfast North Yorkshire project came from a combination of sources.

Grants were obtained from Building Digital UK which is part of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, the European Regional Development Fund, the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development operated by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, and Openreach.

North Yorkshire Council said online connectivity in rural parts of North Yorkshire had been lagging behind urban areas, hindering economic growth and leaving tens of thousands of businesses and households plunged into technology blackspots.

It notes that full fibre broadband is up to 10 times faster than the average home broadband connection and around five times more reliable than the traditional copper-based network.

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