A rural issues group welcomed plans to bring high-speed broadband to areas stuck with lacklustre service, it has been announced.

The UK Government has confirmed recently that universal high speed broadband will be delivered by a regulatory Universal Service Obligation (USO), meaning every rural household or business will have a right to a legally-set broadband speed of at least 10 mbps.

 

An offer from BT to deliver a universal service on its own terms was rejected by the Government. BT Openreach, the largest provider of fixed line broadband infrastructure, consistently opposed the USO.

 

CLA Cymru, which represents landowners, farmers and rural businesses welcomed the regulation.

 

Rebecca Williams, director of CLA Cymru said, “The challenges of rolling out fast, reliable and affordable rural broadband are well known but have been recognised by the UK Government with the commitment to provide a universal service obligation of at least 10 Mbps from 2020.

 

“For too long, rural areas have been at the back of the queue when it comes to investment in communications infrastructure and that is why this legal principle is not something which can be compromised. Rural areas now stand a better chance of receiving a decent broadband service without BT monopolising the market and deciding its own terms for connection.

 

CLA Cymru, which campaigns for better broadband for landowners, farmers and rural businesses in Wales, has condemned the figures in the Connected Nations report* published recently, which showed that only 18 per cent of people could access 4G coverage in their rural homes and businesses compared to 64 per cent in urban areas.

The report also demonstrated that Wales and the other devolved nations lag behind the most poorly served English rural areas.

Similarly, 3% of premises in England do not have access to decent broadband, while the equivalent figure for the other nations varies between 5% and 7%.

Rebecca Williams added, “Rural areas suffer, but it’s vital to stress that connectivity issues affect everybody as we are mobile throughout the UK.

 

“It is vital for the UK Government to move as swiftly as possible towards meeting its objective of universal coverage in 2020 and to ensure legal guarantees are set for any future universal obligation. Ten Mbps is only a benchmark minimum speed which is sufficient now but as technology advances could be too slow in just five years’ time.”