Oral Answers to Questions

Matt Hancock Excerpts

Thursday 24th June 2010 Commons Chamber

[Nadhim Zahawi (Stratford-on-Avon) (Con)]

9. What discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills on the roll-out of broadband to rural areas.

[Matthew Hancock (West Suffolk) (Con)]

11. What discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills on the roll-out of broadband to rural areas.

[The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Mrs Caroline Spelman)]

As I am sure the House is aware, a former Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and Secretary of State for Wales, Peter Walker, has passed away. I felt it right to record our gratitude for his services to agriculture, and our condolences to his family.

I wrote to the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, and have followed that up with conversations with my right hon. Friends the Secretaries of State for Business Innovation and Skills and for Culture, Media and Sport about this important issue. I have spoken to the latter—the Government lead on broadband—to express my support for the initiatives announced on 8 June to take broadband to rural communities.

--- Later in debate ---

[Mrs Spelman]

I thank my hon. Friend for drawing attention to the importance of super-fast broadband provision to all generations in our society, and to the social inclusivity it provides. The coalition Government have made a clear commitment to roll out super-fast broadband to ensure that those who live in rural communities are not disadvantaged. As my hon. Friend pointed out, that includes businesses, but it also includes children, who often need broadband to complete their homework. I assure him that this is a priority for the Department, and that the choice of location for the pilots will be decided shortly.

[Matthew Hancock]

I welcome the Secretary of State and her team to the Front Bench. I also welcome what she said about rural broadband. In counties such as Suffolk, it is an important part of our modern infrastructure. The people of Suffolk are enterprising and innovative, and I know that they too will warmly welcome what the Secretary of State has said. However, will she tell us more about the importance of community initiatives for improving broadband, and what she will do to support them?

[Mrs Spelman]

Obviously, broadband is very important to my hon. Friend’s constituency, which contains many farmers. It is simply assumed that those farmers will have access to broadband in order to complete form-filling online.

As I said earlier, this is a community opportunity. There are some excellent examples of the big society at work in Northumberland and Rutland, where communities have come together to ensure that good broadband access is available to all.