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Articles for Category Tag - Politics

Openreach 2023 Engineers Threading UK Fibre

Q1 2023 Openreach Progress Update on Wales FTTP Build Contract

7th June, 2023 (11 Comments)

The Welsh Government (WG) has released their Q1 2023 progress update on the £52.5m Phase 2 Superfast Cymru contract with Openreach (BT), which confirms that a total of 36,869 extra premises (up from 35,770 in Q4 2022) have now gained access to their gigabit speed Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) broadband ISP network.

Project-Gigabit-Broadband-Map-for-Northern-Ireland-2023

85,504 Premises in N.Ireland Need Help to Get Gigabit Broadband

6th June, 2023 (4 Comments)

The Building Digital UK agency and Department for the Economy (DfE) have published a new Public Review (PR) consultation for Northern Ireland, which reveals that some 85,504 premises might need state aid help under the £5bn Project Gigabit broadband rollout scheme in order to access 1Gbps speeds.

Gov Launch New £7m Fund to Test UK Rural Broadband Solutions UPDATE

6th June, 2023 (8 Comments)

The UK Government will today launch a new £7 million fund as one part of their wider Unleashing Rural Opportunity strategy, which will be used to “test out new ways” of bringing together satellite, wireless (FWA and mobile) and fixed line broadband ISP solutions to help “support farmers and tourism businesses” in rural areas.

BT Has Claimed No Business Rates Relief on UK Rollout of New Fibre

31st May, 2023 (11 Comments)

Back in April 2017 the UK Government allowed broadband networks in England and Wales to claim 100% business rates relief on new fibre infrastructure for a period of 5-years, which is a change that Openreach and other FTTP builders had long sought. So it may come as a surprise to learn that BT has never claimed this benefit.

Guest Editorial – Progress on Trial to Run Fibre via the Water Mains

27th May, 2023 (0 Comments)

The UK Government’s Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) has today revealed their progress and learnings from the first phase of the £6.2m “Fibre in Water” trial, which aims to test the deployment of fibre optic (FTTP) broadband cables through a live water mains (used for drinking water).

Channel Islands 2023 Map - Guernsey and Jersey

Guernsey Regulator Orders Broadband Price Cuts of 11%

25th May, 2023 (4 Comments)

The Guernsey Competition & Regulatory Authority (GCRA) has ruled that the wholesale charges for broadband services on the English Channel Island, which are paid by ISPs and then passed on to consumers, should be lowered by 11% on average to create a “better deal for end-users while ensuring profits are reasonable.”

Altice UK Raises Stake in Telecoms Giant BT to 24.5 Percent

23rd May, 2023 (6 Comments)

Broadband giant BT Group is facing renewed fears of a possible takeover attempt by French billionaire Patrick Drahi’s Altice UK today, which has once again increased its stake in the telecoms giant from 18% to 24.5% – just a shade under the level that might typically spark an investigation (another one).

Digital Poverty Alliance Calls on UK Gov to Cut VAT on Broadband to 5%

23rd May, 2023 (9 Comments)

The Digital Poverty Alliance (DPA) has published their 2023 National Delivery Plan, which calls on the UK Government to help support ISPs to get more people in disadvantaged groups online, such as by cutting Value Added Tax on broadband ISP and mobile bills to just 5% (currently 20%) – similar to other utility services.

Government May Cut Free WiFi Wireless Internet from UK Trains

22nd May, 2023 (35 Comments)

The UK Government’s Department for Transport (DfT) has hinted that the ability of railway commuters to access free onboard public WiFi while travelling could be cut to help pay for the train service itself, which is said to be unsustainable in its current form.

AltNets Full Fibre UK Coverage Map May 2023 - INCA

Alternative Full Fibre ISPs Cover 8.2 Million UK Premises as Build Slows

17th May, 2023 (23 Comments)

The Independent Networks Co-operative Association (INCA) and Point Topic just published their 2023 report into the impact of alternative “full fibre” (FTTP/B) gigabit broadband networks, which reveals that AltNets grew their UK cover by 50.18% in 2022 to top 8.22 million premises (up from 5.46m in 2021). But the rollout slowed.

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland map outline.

Councils Warn Digital Divide Holding Some Back in Broadband Slow Lane

12th May, 2023 (16 Comments)

The Local Government Association, which represents councils from across England and Wales, has published a “new” report that warns of how poorer households are being left behind in the “broadband slow lane“, with access to fixed broadband being 15 percentage points lower in the most deprived areas than in the least deprived.

Wales 2023 Map of Broadband Slowspots Sub 30Mbps

Wales Hints at £70m Broadband Upgrade for 84,000 Premises

11th May, 2023 (11 Comments)

The Welsh Government has put out a Prior Information Notice (PIN) on a future project for “Extending High Speed Broadband Reach in Wales“, which indicates that they’re preparing to procure a contract worth around £70m (state aid) to upgrade broadband for 84,000 premises (i.e. those that can’t yet get “superfast” speeds of 30Mbps+).

Freedom Fibre Win Rural Shropshire Gigabit Broadband Rollout Contract

10th May, 2023 (2 Comments)

The eighth contract to be awarded under the UK Government’s £5bn Project Gigabit broadband rollout scheme – worth £24 million – has today been awarded to network builder Freedom Fibre, which will upgrade connectivity for “around” 12,000 hard-to-reach homes and businesses across rural parts of Shropshire (England).

Guernsey ISP Sure Extend 1Gb FTTP Broadband to 9,000 Homes

3rd May, 2023 (4 Comments)

The States of Guernsey has confirmed that their joint £37.5m project with incumbent broadband ISP Sure, which aims to build a new Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) network across the entire English Channel Island of Guernsey (30,000 premises) by the end of 2026, is running ahead of schedule and has now covered 9,000 homes.

scotland_rural_5g_mast_Scottish_government

First of 120 Planned UK Gov Funded 4G Mast Upgrades Goes Live in Scotland

3rd May, 2023 (1 Comment)

The first UK government-funded rural 4G mobile mast upgrade has today been completed in the Lockerbie area in Scotland, which forms part (£75m) of their industry-led £1bn Shared Rural Network (SRN) project with EE (BT), Vodafone, Three UK and O2 (Virgin Media). A further 120+ masts in Scotland are also set for upgrades.

Openreach 2023 Two FTTP Engineers on Doorstep

Openreach Add 10 New UK Locations to FTTP Broadband Rollout

2nd May, 2023 (76 Comments)

Openreach (BT) has today issued another update to their £15bn UK rollout of a new multi-Gigabit capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) broadband ISP network, which adds 10 new locations to their deployment plan – covering an additional 124,000 homes and businesses in places across England, Wales and Scotland.

April 2023 BT Progress Update on 10Mbps UK Broadband USO

2nd May, 2023 (7 Comments)

UK ISP BT has published their latest biannual (April 2023) update on the progress they’ve made in delivering the 10Mbps Universal Service Obligation (USO) for broadband, which reveals that they’ve so far built a USO connection to over 7,000 premises (up from 5,900 in Oct 2022), with 800 further builds in progress (down from 2,000).