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 increase the availability of fibre-optic broadband businesses in (a) Denton and Reddish constituency, (b) Tameside local authority area, (c) Stockport local authority area and (d) the North West.

Current superfast broadband coverage is over 80% of UK premises and the Government remains committed to providing 95% coverage to homes and businesses by December 2017. This is an increase from 45% coverage in 2010.

The Department deposited data in the House of Commons Library which estimates commercial coverage and coverage supported by public investment in constituencies by the end of 2017. The table can be found here: http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/business-papers/commons/deposited-papers/?house=1&search_term=Department+for+Culture%2c+Media+and+Sport&itemId=122028#toggle-163

In Denton and Reddish commercial broadband delivery is expected to cover 97% of homes and businesses. By the end of the Greater Manchester broadband project in March 2017, coverage is expected to have increased to near 99% of premises. Over 1,000 homes and businesses will benefit in Denton and Reddish from this public investment, and over 750 of these are already able to access better broadband due to the project.

As of 11 June 2015, 29 cabinets had been upgraded in Tameside under the Greater Manchester project, bringing access to fibre broadband to over 2,500 homes and businesses of the planned 5,900 in the project. At the same date 30 cabinets had been upgraded in Stockport, bringing access to fibre to over 2,000 homes and businesses of the planned 4,700 in the project.

Projects with Government funding have provided coverage of superfast broadband to over 263,000 homes and businesses in the North West to date.

Small and medium sized enterprises in 50 UK cities are eligible for a grant of up to £3,000 under the Government’s Broadband Connection Voucher scheme to help pay for the connection costs to faster and better broadband.

To date 3,549 businesses in Greater Manchester and 4,282 businesses in the North West have benefited from the voucher scheme.