Asked by: Calum Kerr (Scottish National Party - Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment the Government has made of the implications for telecoms rating of the separation of Openreach into a separate company; and whether that separation will enable BT's business rates liability to be assessed in the same way as its competitors.
Answered by Matt Hancock
Rateable values are set independently by the Valuation Office Agency. All telecom networks are assessed for business rates in the normal way to the common standard of rateable value.
Asked by: Calum Kerr (Scottish National Party - Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what contingency plans the Government has made to ensure that broadband and telecom companies are not left operating under the current regulatory framework in the event that the new European Electronic Communications Code is not transposed into UK law before the UK leaves the EU.
Answered by Matt Hancock
The department is in consultation with all stakeholders its to understand how leaving the EU will impact them, including the UK telecoms industry. We want our new partnership with the EU to minimise the regulatory and market access barriers for both goods and services.
Asked by: Calum Kerr (Scottish National Party - Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment the Government has made of the cost to UK telecoms providers of any divergence between EU and UK electronic communications regulatory regimes after the UK leaves the EU.
Answered by Matt Hancock
The Government is currently assessing the EU Electronic Communications Code. No such proposal for divergence has been made.
Asked by: Calum Kerr (Scottish National Party - Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment the Government has made of the potential effect on the Dark Fibre Access remedy proposal for BT by Ofcom of the policy of levying business rates on BT customers.
Answered by Matt Hancock
My Department has regular discussions with other Government Departments on a range of issues impacting on the regulation of the telecoms sector and regularly receives proposals which contribute to policy development, which are considered on their merits as part of this process.
Asked by: Calum Kerr (Scottish National Party - Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions her Department has had with other departments on whether Ofcom's Dark Fibre Access regulatory remedy is affected by the application of business rates on electronic communications providers purchasing Dark Fibre Access from BT Openreach when it becomes available in October 2017.
Answered by Matt Hancock
My Department has regular discussions with other Government Departments on a range of issues impacting on the regulation of the telecoms sector and regularly receives proposals which contribute to policy development, which are considered on their merits as part of this process.
Asked by: Calum Kerr (Scottish National Party - Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment the Government has made of the cost to UK telecoms providers of any divergence between EU and UK data protection laws after the UK leaves the EU.
Answered by Matt Hancock
The Government is currently assessing the full impact the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) will have on areas of data processing. The UK made several interventions throughout the negotiations on the GDPR, with support from industry, which have secured real benefits and avoided excessive burdens on business.
Asked by: Calum Kerr (Scottish National Party - Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, where the hon. Member for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk can find reference to the consultation for a new voucher scheme for broadband which the Minister for Digital and Culture stated had been announced in the Autumn Statement 2016 in his oral contributions of 28 November 2016.
Answered by Matt Hancock
My Department published the Call for Evidence on local fibre proposals announced at Autumn Statement on 28th December.
Asked by: Calum Kerr (Scottish National Party - Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate her Department has made of the average amount of public funding provided per property under the Broadband Delivery UK scheme.
Answered by Matt Hancock
So far BDUK led projects have passed 4,168,739 premises to the end of Sept 2016. To reach this figure we have paid £924,334,422 in cash terms comprising £497,656,699 BDUK contribution and £426,677,723 local body/devolved contribution.
Asked by: Calum Kerr (Scottish National Party - Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate she has made of the number of premises which will be eligible for the broadband Universal Service Obligation in (a) England, (b) Wales, (c) Scotland and (d) Northern Ireland.
Answered by Matt Hancock
The independent telecoms regulator Ofcom has been commissioned to provide detailed analysis on the key factors that will help inform the design of the broadband Univer sal Service Obligation (USO) and to publish their findings by the end of this year. Their report will identify the number of premises likely to be within the USO footprint on a UK-wide basis. They are also expected to provide a breakdown for England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Asked by: Calum Kerr (Scottish National Party - Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what proportion of premises in (a) the UK, (b) England, (c) Wales, (d) Scotland and (e) Northern Ireland (i) will have access to superfast broadband and (ii) are forecast to have signed up to receive superfast broadband by the end of 2017.
Answered by Matt Hancock
The government is aiming for superfast broadband coverage to reach 95% of UK premises by the end of 2017. This will include delivery from the government's Superfast Broadband Programme and further commercially funded delivery. The precise locations of this delivery are not known.