Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of broadband limitations on the digital competitiveness of SMEs.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Broadband connectivity is vital for businesses and plays a critical role in driving growth and productivity across the UK.
While no direct assessment has been made of the potential impact of broadband limitations on digital competitiveness, wider government analysis has shown that increased broadband speeds lead to an improvement in turnover and productivity for SMEs. That is why government continues to ensure that UK SMEs benefit from high quality digital infrastructure and is committed to ensuring at least 99% of premises receive gigabit broadband coverage by 2032, with over 88% now able to do so.
Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps his Department is taking to improve broadband resilience to support (a) cloud-based telephony and (b) payment systems used by small businesses.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) is working to improve the resilience of broadband that will support a range of services including cloud-based telephony and digital payment systems used by small businesses. DSIT works with Ofcom, which enforces legal duties on providers to maintain secure, reliable networks. Government and industry work together through the Electronic Communications Resilience and Response Group (EC-RRG) to promote resilience within the sector, and to respond to emergencies.
Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what recent discussions he has had with (a) Openreach and (b) CityFibre on delays in full fibre line installations to businesses based in the Farnham and Bordon constituency.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Farnham and Bordon constituency is set to benefit from three live Project Gigabit contracts: the Hampshire and East & West Sussex contracts, being delivered by CityFibre, and the West and Mid Surrey contract being delivered by Openreach. These contracts are targeted at premises that are not expected to receive a gigabit-capable connection as part of a broadband supplier’s commercial rollout, and we are in regular contact with both suppliers to monitor their progress against planned delivery milestones.
Where a delay is reported as part of a supplier’s commercial rollout, we cannot intervene as we are bound by Subsidy Control regulations. However, we keep commercial plans under review and will continue to refresh our plans for reaching any remaining premises in line with the government’s ambition for nationwide gigabit coverage by 2032.
Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what recent assessment he has made of the impact of geographic differences in full fibre availability on local economic development.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Digital infrastructure is a powerful driver of economic growth and development. In 2023, the telecoms services industry contributed around 2.5% to UK real GVA, up from 0.3% in 2010.
Geographical areas with lower levels of full fibre availability are less likely to benefit economically than areas with higher levels of full fibre availability. Government interventions, alongside the commercial market, are addressing this disparity. Evidence from the government’s Superfast programme showed that for every £1 spent on connections to premises left behind by the market, up to £4.57 was generated in economic and social benefits. Employment in the local areas benefiting from the programme also increased by 0.88%. We expect Project Gigabit to continue to drive local economic growth and development in areas which stand to benefit from the programme.
Building Digital UK also publishes independent evaluations of its programmes at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/building-digital-uk-research-portal
Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what recent discussions he has had with mobile phone providers on inflation-linked price increases in fixed-term mobile phone contracts.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
I have not had any such recent discussions but the Government works closely with Ofcom, the independent regulator of telecommunications, to ensure telecom contracts remain fair and transparent, ensuring significant clauses, such as in-contract price increases, are clear at the time of purchase.
Following a review Ofcom banned inflation-linked price rises, since January 2025 providers have been required to inform customers upfront of any in-contract price rises in pounds and pence included in their contract.
Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps his Department is taking with (a) broadband network infrastructure providers, (b) local authorities and (c) utility companies to prevent vouchers issued under the Gigabit Broadband Voucher Scheme from expiring before rollout to premises is completed; and whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of renewing expired vouchers where works are not completed by the required deadline.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Vouchers issued under the Gigabit Broadband Voucher Scheme are valid for 12 months from the date issued. Building Digital UK (BDUK) maintains regular contact with local authorities and broadband suppliers to discuss any issues relating to the delivery of voucher projects, and suppliers can request an extension if they are experiencing delays to their rollout due to third parties, for example as a result of wayleave application and civil works.
Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps the Government is taking to support communities to access media literacy education.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Government is adopting a holistic approach to digital inclusion integrating related policy on digital skills and media literacy. The Digital Inclusion Action Plan outlines steps towards delivering digital inclusion for everyone in the UK, including supporting community initiatives for boosting digital skills and media literacy.
Under updated media literacy duties, Ofcom is developing a ‘place-based’ model to embed media literacy into community digital strategies, working with the Good Things Foundation to support Digital Inclusion Hubs to offer media literacy.
Prevent’s network of Civil Society Organisations also deliver projects across England & Wales related to media literacy and critical thinking skills.
Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if his Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of working with (a) Building Digital UK and (b) Openreach to expedite the rollout of broadband through Project Gigabit in Moor Park, Farnham.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Openreach is delivering a Project Gigabit contract for Surrey (and surrounding areas) in which premises in the area of Moor Park, Farnham are included.
Project Gigabit contracts are typically delivered in stages, enabling suppliers to build out to rural and harder-to-reach areas from the central network in a quick and efficient way. The delivery timeframe of the Project Gigabit rollout in Moor Park is highly dependent on the placement of Openreach’s existing network and is therefore at Openreach’s discretion.
Build on this contract has already commenced and is scheduled to complete by 2030.
Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps his Department is taking to ensure adequate safeguards are in place for (a) older and (b) vulnerable people during the transition from the Public Switched Telephone Network to digital landlines.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
This is an issue that the new Government takes especially seriously. The Government is determined to ensure that any risks arising from the industry-led migration from the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) to Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) are mitigated, for all customers across the UK.
A definition of vulnerable customers who may require additional support in the context of the digital switchover was published in November 2024. It includes those who are telecare users and those dependent on their landline. Any customer, including the elderly, can also self-identify as requiring additional support.
Communication providers and network operators signed voluntary charters in December 2023 and March 2024, committing to protect vulnerable consumers during the PSTN migration. On 18 November 2024, the major communication providers agreed to adhere to further safeguards set out in the non-voluntary migrations checklist before restarting non-voluntary migration of customers.
Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, pursuant to his Answer of 21 November to Question UIN 14700 on Broadband: advertising, whether he plans to include guidance in his forthcoming Statement of Strategic Priorities.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The government sees the use of consistent terminology between providers as a means to support take-up of gigabit capable broadband services and we continue to engage with Ofcom on this topic.
The government is planning to consult on the draft updated Statement of Strategic Priorities (SSP) for telecommunications, the management of radio spectrum, and postal services in the coming weeks. As part of the consultation process, we would welcome views on content of the SSP from industry stakeholders.