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

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what funding for broadband his Department has provided to (a) Bedford Borough Council and (b) Central Bedfordshire Council in each of the last three years.

The Government has allocated £2.6million to the Central Superfast partnership which includes Central Bedfordshire, Bedford Borough and Milton Keynes under Phase 1 of the Superfast Broadband Programme. Funding of £34,372 has been paid to the project so far, paid in financial year 2014/15. The second phase of the programme is in the procurement process and BDUK has allocated £3.18million (to also include coverage of Luton).