Broadband

Debate between Julian Sturdy and Neil Parish

Wednesday 4th March 2015 Westminster Hall

[Neil Parish]

I am not going to get drawn into giving an exact answer to the hon. Gentleman. I shall come on to that issue later. BT is doing a good job in some areas, but it could do better in others; that is what we all want to see. However, we must recognise that, rightly or wrongly, BT is a major player in delivery, and delivering broadband to all our businesses and residents, wherever they are, is essential.

The Government have been ambitious in their plan to transform broadband in the UK, which has been co-ordinated by Broadband Delivery UK. The Government’s roll-out of superfast broadband has reached more than 1 million homes and businesses across the UK. The £1.7 billion nationwide roll-out is firmly on track to extend superfast broadband to 95% of UK homes and businesses by 2017. The rate at which fibre technology is being rolled out under the programme is rapidly accelerating, and up to 40,000 premises are gaining access every week. A key part of our long-term economic plan is to provide the digital tools that people and businesses need to thrive.

However—there is always a however—the move to online services is in serious danger of leaving thousands of people in digital darkness. The current target of 95% superfast broadband coverage by 2017 still leaves behind 5%. We must also ensure that we get to 95% by 2017. “The final 5%” is a misleading term, as it will not be evenly distributed across the country. Some communities—particularly those in rural areas—are disproportionately affected. More than 10% of the countryside is still without access to broadband in any form, and there are 12,000 premises with no digital footprint whatever.

As a member of the Select Committee on Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, I took part in the inquiry on rural broadband provision and digital-only services. As our report made clear, the difficult geographical nature of some communities must not be used as an excuse for a lack of broadband or poor broadband speeds. Those challenges should encourage investment and innovation in new types of technology.

[Julian Sturdy (York Outer) (Con)]

I join other Members in congratulating my hon. Friend on securing this important debate. He is right to praise what the Government have done so far, but he is also right to talk about the growing digital divide. It is important that we get superfast broadband to the final percentage of rural communities. Does he agree that, to get to those rural communities, we need to embrace new wireless technology? Ultimately, fibre to the cabinet will not deliver to those communities.

[Neil Parish]

My hon. Friend is exactly right. Our experience in Devon and Somerset is that new technologies have not been used quickly enough in the roll-out of broadband. BDUK is beginning to pick up and pilot some new technologies, but more should have been done more quickly. One of the purposes of this debate is to say to the Minister and to BDUK that we must deliver broadband faster and look at new technologies. A lot of the technologies are already out there. For example, smaller boxes can be put on to telegraph polls. I am not a technical man, but there are ways to deliver broadband more quickly. I imagine that the problems in Devon and Somerset are similar to those in Yorkshire, so we need to work on them.

Finance (No. 4) Bill

Debate between Julian Sturdy and Neil Parish

Monday 16th April 2012 Commons Chamber

[Julian Sturdy]

My hon. Friend is right that any cut in fuel duty or reduction in potential rises that are coming down the line has a huge impact on the Treasury’s finances, and the money always has to be found elsewhere. However, I go back to my original point, which will have some resonance across the House: rural areas are particularly affected by high fuel prices and that has an impact on the rural economies. I ask the Exchequer Secretary to keep the matter constantly under consideration whenever he looks at increasing fuel prices.

[Neil Parish (Tiverton and Honiton) (Con)]

My hon. Friend makes a good case for reducing fuel duty, especially in rural areas. However, I also recognise that the Chancellor has only so much money and that taking people who earn up to £9,000 out of tax will help many lower-paid workers in many rural areas. That will help. We must concentrate our finance on where we can put it to best use.

[Julian Sturdy]

I agree. Raising tax thresholds will be hugely helpful, and I will speak about that later. My hon. Friend is right that the number of people we will take out of tax has sadly been a little lost in the press and media coverage of the Budget. We must champion and emphasise that policy.

I want to consider another controversial issue at a household level, which several hon. Members have already mentioned: the child benefit reforms in clause 8. In the early consultation on the proposals, I wrote to Her Majesty’s Treasury, asking for them to be reviewed. The amendments in the Budget are clearly positive developments, which brought some fairness back to the policy. My concern now is about how it will be implemented and whether the costs of administering the reduction in child benefit will be worth the benefits. I hope that more light will be shed on that in due course. I would also like to put on record again my support for transferable tax allowances as a way of increasing fairness in the system. I believe that Ministers are still examining that, and I hope that it will get due consideration.

My hon. Friend the Member for Tiverton and Honiton (Neil Parish) briefly raised the personal tax allowance changes that the Government have made. Again, I commend the Government for raising personal tax allowances faster to ensure that more of the lowest paid are lifted out of paying tax altogether. That is an excellent policy and a very Conservative principle.

The controversy about the so-called granny tax in clause 4 is understandable. I have great sympathy with those who are unhappy about the changes, but I must make a couple of points. We live in extreme times. The largest budget deficit since the second world war requires a strong Government to make decisions that they would not choose to take in other circumstances. Opposition Members can attempt to make political hay out of such decisions, but they were not charged with the responsibility of cleaning up the current mess. With an increasing state pension, the triple-lock guarantee and the protection of key benefits such as free eye tests, prescriptions, TV licences and bus travel, pensioners remain at the top of the priority list when it comes to protecting individuals from the full impact of the economic crisis.

In summary, the Bill contains a great deal of positive, forward-thinking and private sector-encouraging policies. It deals with the difficult but necessary financial decisions and judgments, which will be truly appreciated and tested only in the fullness of time, and yet the message is almost more powerful than the contents. The Bill is unashamedly proactive in building a more competitive international economy. For that reason alone, I hope hon. Members give it full backing tonight.