Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate he has made of the number of households with an internet connection with a speed which cannot exceed 10Mbps; and if he will make a statement.

Ofcom’s Connected Nations Report 2019 estimated that the number of households that could not receive a ‘decent’ broadband service providing at least 10Mbps download speeds from either a fixed line or Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) connection, and are therefore potentially eligible for a connection under the Universal Service Obligation, was 189,000 premises. Ofcom’s Connected Nations Report 2020 is due to be published before the end of the year, and we expect to see a further reduction in the number of premises that cannot access a broadband service that meets the specification under the Universal Service Obligation.