Asked by: Philip Hollobone (Conservative - Kettering)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to deliver full-fibre and gigabit-capable broadband by 2025 in (a) Kettering constituency, (b) north Northamptonshire and (c) England.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
88 percent of premises in the Kettering constituency and 83 percent of premises in North Northamptonshire are able to access gigabit-capable broadband.
The Government has now launched market engagement exercises in all Project Gigabit intervention areas in England and are making excellent progress on our Project Gigabit procurements covering premises in Kettering and North Northamptonshire, with contracts expected to be awarded next year.
More immediate support for premises in rural areas is also available through the Gigabit Broadband Voucher Scheme.
Asked by: Philip Hollobone (Conservative - Kettering)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
What proportion of addresses have access to gigabit-capable broadband connections in (a) Kettering constituency and (b) England.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
88 per cent of premises in the Honourable Member’s constituency are able to access gigabit-capable broadband.
Across the UK as a whole, 66 per cent of premises now have access to gigabit broadband, up from six per cent three years ago. This means Kettering’s connectivity is above the national average and we are on track for gigabit coverage to reach at least 85 per cent of premises by 2025 and we are working to reach near-universal coverage as soon as possible thereafter.
Asked by: Philip Hollobone (Conservative - Kettering)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether all participants regardless of their covid-19 vaccination status are tested both prior to and after the event they attend in the large events pilots of the Events Research Programme; when and how those results are published; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Events Research Programme Science Board has planned for testing to take place both before and after each of the event pilots to ensure event safety and to gather evidence on the pilots. This will be for all attendees, regardless of COVID vaccination status, and there will be no requirement for participants to show proof of the vaccine.
The Events Research Programme (including DCMS, DHSC and BEIS) will report at the end of May to the Prime Minister, to feed into wider discussions around Step 4 of the roadmap.
Asked by: Philip Hollobone (Conservative - Kettering)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to covid-19 testing at large events pilots taking place as part of the Events Research Programme, whether the test results are planned to be recorded separately for people who have received (a) zero, (b) one and (c) two doses of a covid-19 vaccine.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
An individual’s vaccination status will be included as a variable when analysing test result data relating to the Events Research Programme (ERP). This will enable analysis of whether vaccinations have impacted on any potential transmission at the events.
The Events Research Programme (including DCMS, DHSC and BEIS) will report at the end of May to the Prime Minister, to feed into wider discussions around Step 4 of the roadmap.
Asked by: Philip Hollobone (Conservative - Kettering)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, by what date 100 per cent of residents of (a) Kettering constituency and (b) England will have access to superfast broadband.
Answered by Lord Vaizey of Didcot
Based on current delivery plans, it is estimated that 97% of premises in Kettering will have access to superfast broadband by the end of 2017. Additional funding sources, including the gainshare funding that BT have offered in response to the high levels of take-up being achieved, will allow coverage to be extended further in Kettering and the rest of the area covered by the Northamptonshire broadband project.
The government currently aims to achieve superfast broadband coverage for 95% of UK premises by December 2017, and to extend coverage beyond that as far as possible. As the Prime Minister announced last autumn, the government proposes that by the end of this parliament people should have a legal right to request access to a good level of broadband speed, no matter where they live.
Asked by: Philip Hollobone (Conservative - Kettering)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps he is taking to ensure the delivery of superfast broadband to the remaining five per cent of properties which do not have access to it in (a) Northamptonshire and (b) England.
Answered by Lord Vaizey of Didcot
By2017, approximately 95 per cent of homes and businesses in Northamptonshire will have access to superfast broadband. To support further delivery, a further £1.9 million of funding has been made available through the contractual gainshare arrangements, and Northamptonshire County Council has further funding available beyond this for additional procurement.
In addition, the Government is supporting seven pilot projects to help deliver superfast broadband services to the hardest to reach parts of the UK. We will publish the findings from the pilots in duecourse.
Asked by: Philip Hollobone (Conservative - Kettering)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if he will discuss with the BBC Trust what steps it plans to take to monitor how the BBC fulfils its campaign on the duty of impartiality during the forthcoming referendum on the UK's EU membership.
Answered by Lord Vaizey of Didcot
I am keenly aware of the importance of coverage of the EU referendum by our broadcasters being impartial and balanced. I have asked the BBC Trust, major commercial broadcasters, and Ofcom to consider the need for the broadcasting regulatory structure to ensure this impartiality is delivered.
Asked by: Philip Hollobone (Conservative - Kettering)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what additional funding his Department is making available to ensure that the remaining 10 per cent of premises get superfast broadband access.
Answered by Lord Vaizey of Didcot
The Government has allocated £250m funding to increase superfast broadband from 90 per cent to 95 per cent of premises by 2017, with local match funding, as part of phase 2 of the Superfast Broadband programme. The Government has also created a £10 million fund to invest in pilot projects to explore options for delivery to the remaining premises.
Asked by: Philip Hollobone (Conservative - Kettering)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what comparative assessment he has made of high speed broadband coverage between (a) Northamptonshire and other counties and (b) the UK and other EU nations.
Answered by Lord Vaizey of Didcot
According to the most recent data from Ofcom, in 2013 superfast broadband was available to 73.8 per cent of premises in Northamptonshire, compared with 73 per cent of premises across the UK as a whole. The average speed in Northamptonshire was 17.5Mbps, compared with the UK average of 14.7Mbps. Ofcom's European Broadband Scorecard published in March 2014 showed that the UK had the highest superfast broadband coverage of the five largest EU Member States.