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

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment Ofcom has made of the reasons for disputes between service providers and Openreach over (a) the provision of telephone and broadband services and (b) the service provided to James and Susan Love of Aldington, Worcestershire.

Ofcom has recently completed a review of Openreach quality of service and has establish new rules to bring about faster line repairs and installations for telephone and broadband customers.

The new regulations which came into effect on 1st July, will ensure that the majority of phone and broadband faults will have to be repaired within two working days, while most customers requiring a new line must receive an appointment within 12 working days. Should Openreach fail to meet the new standards, the company will face sanctions from Ofcom, which could include fines. Openreach will also be required to report publicly on its performance quarterly from October 2014.

Ofcom does not handle individual consumer complaints, for which an alternative dispute resolution (ADR) process is provided.