Media Bill

Douglas Ross Excerpts

Report stage
Tuesday 30th January 2024 Commons Chamber

[Douglas Ross (Moray) (Con)]

It is a pleasure to speak in the debate about this important legislation, and to hear cross-party support for the Bill and the work done in Committee, on Second Reading, in which I took part, and now on Report. I warmly welcome the Bill and the work done by the Minister for Media, Tourism and Creative Industries and her team, as well as by the interim Minister, the right hon. Member for Maldon (Sir John Whittingdale), in the early stages.

I will focus on new clause 8, which I tabled. The new clause looks at what is not in the Bill and what has been omitted, which I hope the Minister will consider during her summing up and in the Bill’s remaining stages. Protection for digital terrestrial television and radio broadcast services that people receive via an aerial needs to be written into the Bill. New clause 8 would put in law for the first time a legal protection for these crucial life-line services. It would put a duty on the Government to keep issuing multiplex licences and on Ofcom to make available sufficient radio spectrum.

Currently, these services are guaranteed only until 2034, with the risk that they could be switched in 2030 —in just six years. Ministers hinted at Second Reading that these services will have a longer shelf life than 2034, which is welcome. However, I will focus my remarks on the Scottish Affairs Committee, of which I am a member, and our report, which I will come to, because at the Committee, the Minister said:

“What happens after 2034 is a live question.”

I agree that it a “live question”, which is why we need a live answer to the issue.

I welcome the Minister’s positive comments in Committee and those of the Secretary of State on Second Reading—indeed, I quoted a speech by the Secretary of State. There is a lot of positivity about what I am hearing from the Government and I hope they will go a step further by taking on the conclusions I have come to in new clause 8.

No one is pushing against the tide on the growth in streaming, but terrestrial television, often referred to as Freeview, and broadcast radio still account for the bulk of viewing and listening across the United Kingdom. I come to the issue from a Scottish angle, as I represent a Scottish constituency and am a member of the Scottish Affairs Committee, where we discussed this at length, but the issue affects people across the United Kingdom. Research from Ipsos in 2022 showed that most adults had watched digital terrestrial television in the last year and 43% of adults watched digital terrestrial television every week. Some 76% listened to broadcast radio weekly.

The hon. Member for Aberdeen North (Kirsty Blackman) was right to highlight the very good Scottish Affairs Committee report on the subject and she mentioned the issues. As the report says on page 13:

“Almost a third (31%) of households in Scotland only used Digital Terrestrial Television services…to watch television in the first quarter of 2022.”

Paragraph 33 highlights correspondence to the Committee from Laurie Patten, director of strategy and regulation at Arqiva, who argued that

“Scotland’s greater rurality than the UK average, its island communities, and its comparatively older population”

make terrestrial TV services especially important in Scotland. That is why we made that issue so prominent in the report. I have continued to raise the matter with Ministers, and proposed new clause 8.

The hon. Member for Aberdeen North was right to say the issue is important not only to people in rural communities and older populations, and that it has an impact on some of the most vulnerable in society. The campaign group Broadcast 2040+ has assembled a coalition of groups representing those who rely on broadcast services the most. They include older people, who rely disproportionately on terrestrial television. Some 80% of those aged 75 and above only watch their media, news and programmes through that means, and they often struggle to access IP content.

Age UK is a member of the coalition. Their charity director, Caroline Abrahams, said:

“While broadcast TV and radio is enjoyed by many across the UK, it is especially important for older audiences particularly those on low incomes living alone. Many older people value the current universal services and would struggle to afford alternatives such as subscriptions services.”

Because they are free to air, they are also a lifeline to people on lower incomes or living in digital poverty, who often struggle to afford the additional cost of subscription streaming services and the cost of superfast broadband connections that are required to access them. Elizabeth Anderson, chief executive office of the Digital Poverty Alliance said:

“For the millions living in digital poverty in the UK, TV and radio broadcast services are vital sources of news, public education and entertainment. The universality of access to broadcast services must be paramount. Whilst many services have seen a rush to digital only delivery, applying this to TV and radio when so many lack the devices, skills and connectivity packages to access internet based media would simply push millions of people deeper into financial and social exclusion.”

[Jamie Stone]

The hon. Gentleman’s words strike a chord with me because he highlights exactly the issues in my vast, far-flung constituency. In the straths and glens of Sutherland, Caithness, Ross and Cromarty, there are many folk who cannot afford such services, precisely as he is saying. I am glad he is saying what he is saying, and I am listening with very great interest. It is important that this issue is aired.

--- Later in debate ---

[Douglas Ross]

The hon. Gentleman represents an extremely rural part of northern Scotland. My constituency is not quite so rural, but many people in Moray experience similar challenges to those of his constituents in the far north.

[David Duguid (Banff and Buchan) (Con)]

My hon. Friend is making some excellent points and I am hesitant to interrupt him. Although I would not sell his constituency short, my constituency is also very rural. Our constituencies, in common with many of the rural constituencies in Scotland, are very low down the league table of superfast broadband coverage. As much as people might be able to afford or want streaming services, they do not physically have access to them—at least, not yet. Does he agree that makes his new clause even more important?

[Douglas Ross]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for that point and for supporting my new clause 8. I will come on to not just the affordability but the availability of superfast broadband to get streaming services.

I highlight the importance of broadcast services for rural constituents, including mine in Moray, as well as those of my hon. Friend the Member for Banff and Buchan (David Duguid) and the hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross (Jamie Stone). Graham Biggs, chief executive of the Rural Services Network, has amplified that point, saying that the

“issue of safeguarding DTT and radio is of fundamental importance to rural areas where the population is much older than the national average and the least well served by broadband connectivity. We strongly support the Broadcast 2040+ campaign.”

I have been extremely encouraged by the work of that campaign to get some movement from the Government on the issue.

As my hon. Friend the Member for Banff and Buchan highlighted, the issue of broadband connectivity is of huge concern to constituents in his area, as well as in my Moray constituency. Large parts of Scotland and rural areas around the UK do not have reliable, high-speed broadband, so streaming TV is not an option. I have little confidence that the problem will be solved by 2040, particularly given some of the problems we have seen with the roll-out of the R100 programme in Scotland.

Even if that roll-out succeeds, all the targets are met and high-speed broadband is delivered across the country, the other measure that we must look at is broadband take-up. EY has recently undertaken a study on that, predicting that regardless of whether high-speed broadband is rolled out, more than 5.5 million properties in the UK will still not have a high-speed broadband subscription in 2040—well beyond 2034 as specified by my new clause. The report makes a number of other worrying findings and paints a compelling picture of the genuine dependence that millions of the most vulnerable members of our society have on broadcast services to stay connected and in touch. Any move towards an online-only system of TV distribution, without the option of digital terrestrial television, would put a significant group of people at risk of being left behind.

As for why I have tabled new clause 8 and why am I looking for certainty from the Government, both they and Ofcom are conducting reviews of the TV market. Ministers have urged us to await those findings, but 2034 is not far away and if these services are to remain, it is crucial that we attract investment and ensure that they remain commercially viable. To do that, as the hon. Member for Aberdeen North correctly said, they need certainty from the Government. The danger is that without that longer-term certainty, beyond 2034, where the Minister has accepted there is a live question, broadcasters might run down their services and the technology might not be updated. If they get certainty from the Government, they can put in investment to ensure people are not without these crucial services and are not left isolated. If the commercial viability of the service is lost while millions of people are still relying on it, there is a real risk that, perversely, the Government would have to step in and use taxpayers’ money to keep the service going. My constructive proposal would not only help keep people connected but, in the long run, perhaps save taxpayers’ money. Surely it is better to provide the longer-term guarantee now that would enable that investment and deliver a good-quality, universal service for years to come.

I thank the Minister, the interim Minister and the Secretary of State and others who have listened to my concerns on this issue. I met the Minister just last week and I will continue the dialogue on this, because it is a crucial element that we should be debating in this House. I hope we will get some movement from the Government. As my right hon. Friend the Member for Maldon (Sir John Whittingdale) said, Media Bills do not come along often, so this is an opportunity for this Minister, this Government and her Department to put my new clause 8 into the Bill and give that guarantee going forward. That would allow the investment to be made and secure the commercial future for DTT, ensuring that people in Moray, across Scotland and around the UK can continue to rely on those services for many years to come.

[Hywel Williams]

First, may I apologise for my late arrival to the debate, Madam Deputy Speaker? I seriously underestimated hon. Members’ capacity for brevity on the previous business. This afternoon, I would like to speak to my new clause 15 and to refer briefly to new clause 1 and clause 28. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Aberdeen North (Kirsty Blackman) for her work with me in Committee—

Media Bill

Douglas Ross Excerpts

2nd reading
Tuesday 21st November 2023 Commons Chamber

[Lucy Frazer]

I was pleased to meet my right hon. Friend to discuss these important points, and I am very proud that this Bill will ensure greater access so that those with impairments can enjoy the things that those of us without impairments already enjoy.

[Douglas Ross (Moray) (Con)]

The Secretary of State mentioned the Scottish Affairs Committee, of which I am a member. She will know that, in our report on public broadcasting, we recommended that the Government provide urgent assurances on maintaining Freeview beyond 2034. That chimes very much with her speech to the Royal Television Society, in which she said:

“We want terrestrial television to remain accessible for the foreseeable future.”

Does she anticipate an opportunity in this Bill to ensure we have that guarantee beyond 2034?

Walter Smith OBE: Contribution to Scottish Football

Douglas Ross Excerpts

Wednesday 17th November 2021 Commons Chamber

[Brendan O’Hara]

Young players who Walter Smith coached through the ranks, including Richard Gough, Maurice Malpas, Ralph Milne, Paul Sturrock and so many more, helped to secure Dundee United back-to-back Scottish league cups, and in 1983 the Scottish premier league title for the first and only time—thus far—in the club’s history. Of course, the following season Dundee United made it all the way to the semi-final of the European cup. Had it not been for a £50,000 bribe given to a French referee by Italian giants Roma, they may well have progressed further.

[Douglas Ross (Moray) (Con)]

rose—

[Brendan O’Hara]

Speaking of referees.

[Douglas Ross]

In this week of all weeks, I should refer hon. Members to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests. Following the hon. Gentleman’s point, it does sound as if some referees are worse than others in terms of monetary affairs.

Let me return to the hon. Gentleman’s excellent speech. I think that both sides of the House would echo what he said about both Bertie Auld and Walter Smith. Sometimes we use the word “legend” too much, but both were legends of the game. However, what probably made them different from just any other player was their decency, both on and off the pitch. That is something that we can remember, as their families mourn them at this time.

[Brendan O’Hara]

Absolutely. I genuinely thank the hon. Gentleman for that contribution. I hope that it brings comfort to both the Auld family and the Smith family that this House is recognising them in this way.

By the mid-1980s, Walter was in great demand. When Alex Ferguson took charge of the Scottish national team, he asked Walter to be his assistant. This time, Jim had no objection. But it was not just the national team who had designs on the Dundee United assistant manager. In the early 1980s, Rangers was going through a particularly barren spell and the new owners were determined to change that. In April 1986, Scottish football was rocked when Graeme Souness was appointed player-manager at Ibrox. Joining him as his assistant, somewhat under the radar, and with none of the fanfare and hullabaloo, was Walter.

History will judge—indeed, history has probably already judged—that the more important and significant signing of that duo was Walter Smith, because although it was Souness who provided the glitz and the glamour, it was Smith who provided the coaching experience, the managerial know-how and the cool head, which was never more exemplified than on the opening day of the 1986-87 season, when the new player-manager was sent off after a melee at Easter Road. But it was a partnership that worked, and the Souness-Smith era, ably assisted by an influx of top English internationals, got off to the perfect start when Rangers won the league cup in 1986.

Apart from a league and cup double in their centenary season, Celtic was left trailing in the wake of this new force, and Rangers, under the guidance of Souness and Smith, appeared set to dominate for the foreseeable future. But just as his arrival at Ibrox caused a sensation, so too did Graeme Souness’s departure, when, with just four games left of the 1990-91 season, he quit Rangers to become manager of Liverpool. Graeme Souness tried to persuade Walter to join him, but the offer to become Rangers manager was just too attractive for the lifelong Rangers fan to turn down. I remember him saying that his only regret was that his beloved grandfather did not live long enough to see it happen.

With the title race going down to the wire in the final game of the season, Aberdeen went to Ibrox needing just a draw to win. Walter was under enormous pressure to win that game. Rangers did win it, and that victory launched them into a period of prolonged dominance in Scottish football.

TV Licences for Over-75s

Douglas Ross Excerpts

Wednesday 8th May 2019 Commons Chamber

[Margot James]

I do not necessarily agree that older people do not have that choice. I agree that many older people rely on the BBC more than any other channel—that is probably true—but older people have access to other channels in the same way as people of other age groups.

[Douglas Ross (Moray) (Con)]

Many of my Moray constituents have contacted me, urging me to support this concession for the over-75s remaining in place. The Minister went over a number of options that the BBC is looking at. Does she understand that many people really do not agree that we should be talking about taking this TV licence concession away from the over-75s when there are so many celebrities and pundits on very high salaries?

[Margot James]

My hon. Friend makes exactly the same point that was made emphatically to me by a very good friend and constituent of mine. The BBC operates in a tough commercial environment. To our minds, such salaries might seem extraordinary—at times, ridiculous—but these are the salaries for very well-established celebrities, sportsmen and women, and a number of others. The BBC has to compete, but I take my hon. Friend’s point; it is one that has been made well by other people who have written to me.

Oral Answers to Questions

Douglas Ross Excerpts

Thursday 10th May 2018 Commons Chamber

[Matt Hancock]

I have seen with interest Martin Lewis’s legal action against Facebook. We are following that with great interest. The internet safety strategy will be coming out in the coming weeks, and that will address these issues.

[Douglas Ross (Moray) (Con)]

Yesterday’s Ofcom report stated that Scotland had the lowest average rural download speeds anywhere in the UK. That has a huge impact on my constituency, so what are both of Scotland’s Governments doing to address that?

[Matt Hancock]

Overall in the UK, we have seen improvements of over 28% in download speeds over the past year, but it is frustrating that we have not been able to get as much broadband coverage in Scotland as we could have done, because the SNP Government in Holyrood have been sitting on millions of pounds of UK cash for over four years now.

Safeguarding Children and Young People in Sport

Douglas Ross Excerpts

Tuesday 1st May 2018 Westminster Hall

[Douglas Ross (Moray) (Con)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir Roger. I, too, congratulate the hon. Member for Enfield, Southgate (Bambos Charalambous) on securing this timely and important debate, and on the sympathetic way in which he outlined the case of Ian Ackley. I also welcome Ian to Westminster and congratulate him on his bravery, because it is only through his bravery and that of others that dangerous individuals such as Barry Bennell have been locked up—put away—and a light has been shone on this unacceptable and despicable practice.

Young people being interested in sport is key for their development and fitness, and it is important that we do everything possible to give them a positive environment when they are learning and nurturing their skills and developing the traits that we hope they will take further into a sporting career, or just into life generally as they get older. Of course it is imperative that we protect children in sport. However, it is also important, as the hon. Gentleman said, that we protect adults who genuinely want to help children in sport. We must alienate and root out the small minority who would use their place in sport to try to harm children in despicable ways.

I want to focus my remarks on what we are doing in Scotland to safeguard children in sport. There is currently a partnership between Children 1st and SportScotland, working with local authorities, local sports trusts, leisure trusts and sports clubs to ensure that we do as much as possible to protect young people in sport. Children 1st and SportScotland published a 116-page document entitled “10 steps to safeguard children in sport”. It is important that everything is in there to ensure that the maximum guidance is available to everyone involved in sport. It is imperative that we get that document to all people involved in sport in Scotland and across the UK.

In preparation for this debate, I spoke with my local sports development officer in Moray Council, Kim Paterson, who explained that she is the only tutor in Moray—quite a wide geographical area—who is delivering the safeguarding and protecting children course. Since January she has run 10 courses and each of them has had the maximum 20 participants, so 200 people in Moray have taken the course in the past few months.

Kim told me that a number of people are almost forced by their national governing body to do the course, so they approach it like a tick-box exercise—they feel that they have to do it. However, when they leave at the end of the day, they tell Kim and others involved in the class that they never knew there was so much information available about protecting children in sport. They might start the course a bit apprehensive about having to do more training, but they leave with far more information, and that is a positive development. If they want to go on further, there is the In Safe Hands course delivered by Children 1st, which is the next level up, looking at child protection officers within local clubs.

People sometimes see these courses as tick-box exercises; they attend once and then never go back. However, it is best practice to renew them every three years. We should all be encouraging people to ensure that they keep up to date with the standards expected of them. Children 1st and SportScotland are looking at an online version for refresher courses in future, which I would very much support.

The debate is timely and reminds us of the bravery displayed by Ian Ackley and others to ensure that individuals who caused harm in sport were brought to justice and did not get away scot-free. As the hon. Member for Enfield, Southgate said, we live in different times, but that does not mean that we should be complacent. If we became complacent, by assuming that this might have happened in the ’70s or ’80s but would not happen in 2018, we would all be letting down children and young people in our areas.

There has been progress across the UK—great work has been done to protect and safeguard children and young people in sport—but I truly believe that there is more to do. Today’s debate reminds us all of the horrors of the past. We must ensure that we do not allow that to be a distant memory and we keep up our efforts to ensure that our children can continue to enjoy sport, to gain from sport and to live their dreams in sport, but that they do not suffer nightmares, as many did under Barry Bennell and others.

[Several hon. Members rose—]

Oral Answers to Questions

Douglas Ross Excerpts

Thursday 8th February 2018 Commons Chamber

[Matt Hancock]

I pay tribute to the hon. Lady for the work she has done as chair of the all-party parliamentary group on FOBTs. She has raised the issue repeatedly and I look forward to working with her on it.

[Douglas Ross (Moray) (Con)]

The Secretary of State will know that climbing will be a new Olympic sport in Tokyo in 2020. Outfit Moray, a great group in my constituency, is encouraging local kids to get involved. What can the Government do across the UK to ensure that we have enough facilities and coaches for this new sport?

Rural Communities in Scotland: Broadband

Douglas Ross Excerpts

Wednesday 22nd November 2017 Westminster Hall

[Douglas Ross (Moray) (Con)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Howarth. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk (John Lamont) on securing this important debate on broadband roll-out in Scotland. As the debate title mentions Scotland, I am sure all right hon. and hon. Members will join me in congratulating Forres in my constituency, which has been named as having the most beautiful high street in Scotland just this week.

Broadband connections are a hugely important issue to me as a constituency MP. It is the issue I have the most correspondence on, whether that is by letter, email or visits to my constituency surgeries. The mainstay of many rural communities, such as the one I represent, is our small businesses. They are often single-person operations, and they provide the glue that keeps rural communities such as those in Moray sustainable. That sustainability is being undermined by the lack of adequate broadband, without which it is simply not possible to trade in this day and age. It is not just small businesses; a significant and successful asset management company operates in my constituency. It has customers scattered across the globe and offices based in London, the United States and Asia. It is a home-grown company and proud of it, but the continued lack of adequate broadband is understandably causing it anxiety. The financial services industry in the UK is not just restricted to London and Edinburgh. It generates employment and revenue across the country, and our broadband coverage should reflect that.

The complaints come from all parts of Moray, with notable notspots including communities such as Rafford and Glenlivet and coastal communities such as Spey Bay. People watching in those communities will be puzzled by the SNP’s objections that local authorities should have more control over the roll-out of broadband in their areas. I was confused to see the glee—I wrote that word down—of SNP Members when my hon. Friend the Member for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk said that the Scottish Government should be stripped of these powers. It is almost as though they do not believe in true devolution from this Parliament to the Scottish Parliament and onwards. [Interruption.] Excuse me: I tell SNP Members that devolution does not stop in Edinburgh. Edinburgh is as far away from Moray as London often seems to be. We want more powers going down to our local authorities, rather than being held by a centralised SNP Government.

[Ross Thomson]

Like me and other hon. Friends, my hon. Friend served as a local councillor. Does he agree that there has been a tendency in the recent past for the Scottish Government to take powers away from our communities? Whether it is decisions about council tax, fire and police or planning, all the tendencies of the Scottish Government are to take powers to the centre and never to give them back.

[Douglas Ross]

I fully agree with my hon. Friend. The SNP Government are only interested in the central belt of Scotland. They are only interested in holding powers in Edinburgh and not in further devolution. I am proud that the Scottish Conservative party and the UK Government are keen to see further devolution.

[Brendan O'Hara]

Will the hon. Gentleman give way?

[Douglas Ross]

I am afraid I have to make progress to allow the hon. Gentleman adequate time to sum up the debate.

The Library briefing for this debate shows that the urban and rural parts of Moray are being let down by the Scottish Government. In Speyside Glenlivet, 52% of connections receive speeds of less than 10 megabits per second. That is an extremely rural ward, yet in Elgin City North, 51% of connections are less than 10 megabits per second. That is not acceptable. In Heldon and Laich, almost 7% of connections receive speeds of less than 2 megabits per second. The SNP should be stripped of the powers because it is not delivering for Scotland. It is time to go direct to the local authorities and deliver true devolution.

I will quickly mention alternatives to the broadband roll-out. I recently met WiFi Scotland, an extremely successful small start-up company based in Elgin and run by Rob Cowan and Angus Munro. It provides wireless broadband services to the Orton and Rothes valley and is looking to expand into Mulben and Boharm. I recently facilitated a meeting for those two gentleman with Moray Council to ensure that we can streamline the planning process to allow them to develop the technology further.

I know that you would like me to conclude, Mr Howarth, so I will simply say that Moray is a great place to live and work—we even have award-winning high streets—but much of that work is in spite of, rather than because of our connectivity. Moray and Scotland deserve better than we are currently getting from the SNP Government. I welcome the announcements from the UK Government to give more power to local authorities.

[Mr George Howarth (in the Chair)]

Before I call the next speaker, I remind him that I will call the first Front-Bench spokesman at 10.30 am.

--- Later in debate ---

[Brendan O'Hara (Argyll and Bute) (SNP)]

As always, it is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Howarth. I cannot imagine you expected such a feisty start to your morning.

What we have seen this morning is probably best described as a missed opportunity to discuss sensibly and rationally what is happening across Scotland, particularly in our rural communities, as Conservative Members from Scotland decided they would rather score cheap political points. Every one of us has localised problems around broadband roll-out; when they let the cat out of the bag, what came out loud and clear this morning, from the hon. Members for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk (John Lamont) and for Moray (Douglas Ross), is that the issue is actually about power stripping and taking powers away from the democratically elected Scottish Government.

I am not saying the Tories are predictable—although perhaps I am. We heard so much about the SNP’s evil centralisation that is taking place, so I took a quick look at the reality and what the figures actually say. By December 2018, access to fibre broadband in Aberdeen city will be 97.5%, in Aberdeenshire it will be 91%, in Angus 94%, in Dumfries and Galloway 97%, in the Scottish Borders 95%, and in Fife 99%.

[Douglas Ross]

Will the hon. Gentleman give way?

[Brendan O'Hara]

I will make some progress and come back to the hon. Gentleman.

If Scottish Conservatives want to talk about grievance and pick an issue with which to bash the Scottish Government, one would think they might find a far better way to deliver it.

--- Later in debate ---

[Douglas Ross]

rose—

[Brendan O'Hara]

I will take an intervention from my hon. Friend first.

[Brendan O'Hara]

My hon. Friend makes an absolutely excellent point, which goes to the contradiction at the heart of the Scottish Conservatives.

[Douglas Ross]

The hon. Gentleman says we are building up grievances. Will he explain that to my constituents who come to my surgeries explaining their frustrations with broadband roll-out? Will he also clarify for Hansard and for this House that the SNP does not want to give powers to local authorities in Scotland? That, too, is devolution, and I am surprised that SNP Members are so opposed to it.

[Brendan O'Hara]

I advise the hon. Gentleman to look at the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015. If that is not about devolving power to local communities, I do not know what is. We all have a mailbag full of broadband connection problems, but the fashion in which the Scottish Conservatives have behaved is unhelpful and unconstructive and does not reflect the reality.

In many ways I am delighted that digital communication is being debated here today, because it gives me the opportunity to enlighten the House as to exactly what is happening in Scotland and what the Scottish Government are doing in their Digital Scotland Superfast Broadband programme, which will have extended fibre access to 800,000 premises by March 2018, meaning that 95% of Scottish homes and businesses will be connected to superfast broadband. I am sure the whole House, with some honourable exceptions, will welcome that and applaud what the Scottish Government are doing.

This debate allows me to inform hon. Members of the enormously ambitious plans that the Scottish Government have—the R100 plans—that will see every home and business connected to superfast broadband with a USO of 30 megabits per second by 2021.

--- Later in debate ---

[Brendan O'Hara]

That is precisely my understanding. It is not in the Scottish Government’s power. I absolutely agree with the right hon. Gentleman.

Unlike the United Kingdom Government, the Scottish Government are absolutely committed to a universal service obligation of 30 megabits per second. Compare that with the 10 megabit per second USO currently on offer from the UK Government.

As I say, we all have problems. My mailbag is absolutely full almost on a daily basis with problems with broadband. That does not mean that we are getting it wrong; it means, as my hon. Friend the Member for Kilmarnock and Loudoun (Alan Brown) said, that we cannot keep up with demand. People rightly demand to be connected. In my constituency of Argyll and Bute, we are losing population. I have said from day one in my two and a half years in this House that digital connectivity is the key to regenerating rural Scotland. I applaud the Scottish Government’s ambition in rolling out superfast broadband at 30 megabits per second throughout rural Scotland.

I believe a bright digital future awaits those not only in Argyll and Bute, but across rural Scotland. Opposition naysayers will have humble pie to eat in a couple of years’ time when it arrives.

The hon. Member for East Lothian (Martin Whitfield) made a useful and thoughtful contribution highlighting the problems and challenges that exist in his constituency. It is a tale I am not unfamiliar with. I echo his call, as I have in the past, to end the silo thinking. There must be a joined-up approach, because digital exclusion will be a serious problem if we do not get this right.

The hon. Member for Angus (Kirstene Hair) made a remarkable contribution and blamed the SNP for the historical copper wiring in the BT network. What can one say? My hon. Friend the Member for Kilmarnock and Loudoun rightly highlighted the historical failure of the UK Government to sufficiently invest in Scotland. He also highlighted the problems facing roll-out in rural Scotland.

The hon. Member for Moray repeated the power- stripping narrative of the hon. Member for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk. If he thinks the Scottish Government should be stripped of their powers, does he think the UK Government should be stripped of their powers and that those powers should be devolved to English local authorities?

[Douglas Ross]

Unbelievable. The spokesperson for the third biggest party does not even realise that in England it is local authorities that deliver. It is because of their failure in Scotland that we should replicate what is happening in England and devolve further to local authorities. I cannot believe the SNP would object to that.

[Brendan O'Hara]

I absolutely do object to it. The Scottish Government, as we have seen, are doing an excellent job in rolling out across Scotland. The Scottish Government are delivering for Scotland.

I have less than two minutes left, so I will be quick and sum up. I firmly believe the Scottish Government are doing their best for Scotland. If the Tories would have us believe that they are the saviours of Scottish rural broadband, can the Minister explain why, since 2014, the UK Government have contributed only a derisory £21 million to support the expansion of Scottish fibre broadband—a figure that is less than that awarded to the counties of Devon and Somerset. Knowing full well that the Scottish Government were planning a USO of 30 megabits roll-out programme, why did the UK Government not even have the courtesy to inform the Scottish Government of their own plans to roll out 10 megabits per second, leaving the Scottish Government to find out from the pages of the press? And why did it take 10 letters over 18 months from the Scottish Government to the DDCMS before the Minister finally met Minister Fergus Ewing, a meeting that took place just two weeks ago?

Finally, when GigaPlus Argyll, the community broadband company on Mull in my constituency, was left high and dry when its contractors went into administration, why were my emails and phone calls totally ignored? They were not even acknowledged by BDUK when I was trying to secure an urgent meeting to salvage something from the wreckage to try to save that project. Why, when I made an appointment to see the Minister himself about the crisis in GigaPlus Argyll, did he not turn up, with not so much as an apology or an offer to reschedule? Scotland is doing a great job in rolling out digital broadband, and I commend the work that the Scottish Government are doing.