Home » UK ISP News Archive » Article Tag: Politics (2538 Posts)

Articles for Category Tag - Politics

UK Ranks 7th in 2018 EU Broadband Connectivity Progress Report

18th May, 2018 (16 Comments)

The European Commission has publish their 2018 Digital Economy and Society Index (DESI), which uses data from 2017 and 2018 to reveal the United Kingdom’s progress toward the EU’s Digital Agenda goals (e.g. NGA 30Mbps+ broadband for all by 2020). This year we remain ranked 7th out of 28 member states.

Welsh Government Update on BT Rollout of Superfast Broadband

16th May, 2018 (12 Comments)

The Welsh Government has issued a progress update on their existing Superfast Cymru project with Openreach (BT), which suggests that BT has delivered a “significantly larger volume” of premises than either party anticipated at the outset but some areas are still causing problems.

Up Your Street – Scotland Tries to Boost Fibre Broadband Take-up

14th May, 2018 (3 Comments)

The Scottish Government‘s Connectivity Secretary, Fergus Ewing, has this week launched a new “Up Your Street” campaign that aims to promote more take-up of the country’s hybrid fibre (FTTC / Cable) dominated fixed line broadband services, which can reach nearly 97% of homes and businesses across Scotland.

Over 50 Cross Party UK MPs Call for Better Rural 4G Mobile Coverage

13th May, 2018 (13 Comments)

More than 50 MPs have signed a letter by the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Rural Services that calls on the government’s digital secretary, Matt Hancock, to ensure that 95% of the UK’s landmass can access a mobile service from all operators (Three UK, Vodafone, EE and O2) by the end of 2022.

Ofcom Study Finds Faster Broadband Speeds Can Boost UK GDP

1st May, 2018 (8 Comments)

A new study, which examined the economic impact of broadband connectivity among 35 OECD countries between 2002 to 2016, has found that a rise in broadband adoption and speeds over the period led to an increase in UK GDP of 0.47% per annum on average (cumulative total of 6.7% over the period).

High Court Rules Part of UK ISP Internet Snooping Law is Unlawful

27th April, 2018 (5 Comments)

The High Court of Justice (Queen’s Bench Division) has today ruled that a key part of the controversial 2016 Investigatory Powers Act, which would force broadband ISPs to log the internet activity of all their customers for up to 12 months, is unlawful and must be amended.

Ofcom UK CEO Warns BT to “fibre-up, or risk fading away”

26th April, 2018 (66 Comments)

The boss of UK telecoms regulator Ofcom, Sharon White, has told a conference in London today that BT (Openreach) must replace their “Victorian-era” copper ISP network with a modern “full fibre” (FTTP/H) broadband alternative or “risk losing swathes of customers to [rivals].”

Northern Ireland to Consult on £150m Ultrafast Broadband Boost

25th April, 2018 (1 Comment)

Last year the Conservative UK government agreed to hand £75m per year (over two years) to “help provide ultra-fast broadband” (100Mbps+) across Northern Ireland, which formed part of a political deal with the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) in order to secure the support of their 10 MPs.

West Dunbartonshire NOT the Worst UK Area for Superfast Broadband

19th April, 2018 (2 Comments)

A curious new report from BroadbandChoices has claimed that only 12 out of the 391 UK councils analysed have reached 95% coverage of “superfast broadband” and the worst is allegedly West Dunbartonshire (Scotland), which suffers from only 11% coverage. Except it’s completely wrong.

UK and USA Warn Russia Wants to Hack Your Broadband ISP Router

17th April, 2018 (17 Comments)

Another day, another security scare. A joint statement by the FBI, DHS and UK NCSC has warned that the Russian Government are now actively conducting “malicious cyber activity” with the aim of compromising network infrastructure devices such as switches, firewalls and even home broadband routers etc.

Scotland Officially Hits 95% Fibre Broadband Coverage Target

17th April, 2018 (9 Comments)

The Scottish Government has today announced that 95.5% of homes and businesses across Scotland should be able to order a “high speed fibre broadband” (FTTC/P) based internet line, although this figure drops to just 92.7% when considering those able to access “superfast broadband” speeds of 24Mbps+.

Telecoms Firms Warned Not to Use Kit and Services from China’s ZTE UPDATE

16th April, 2018 (3 Comments)

The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) has warned UK telecoms operators against using hardware and services provided by ZTE – a Chinese state-owned enterprise – because of the “potential risks to the UK’s national security.”

Industry Says UK Gov and Regulation is Key Barrier to Full Fibre Rollout

16th April, 2018 (23 Comments)

A recent debate of the Digital Infrastructure Panel (hosted by law firm Herbert Smith Freehills), which included representatives from ISPs BT, Hyperoptic and Virgin Media, has highlighted government policy and or regulation as the “key barrier” to large-scale investment in “full fibre” (FTTH/P) broadband.

Scotland Seeks Fair Funding and Criticises UK 10Mbps Broadband USO

16th April, 2018 (11 Comments)

The Scottish Government‘s Rural Economy Secretary, Fergus Ewing, has called on the UK government to correct the “grossly unfair” 10Mbps Universal Service Obligation (USO) for broadband, which appears to be in conflict with Scotland’s own £600m plan to deploy 30Mbps+ broadband to nearly all homes.

INCA Claim Alternative UK FTTP Networks Reach 1 Million Premises

12th April, 2018 (2 Comments)

A new report created jointly by the Independent Networks Co-operative Association (INCA), UKWISPA and Point Topic has estimated that alternative network ISPs had expanded the reach of FTTP/H/B based “full fibre” ultrafast broadband networks to 998,500 premises at the end of 2017.

Government Proposes Tougher Rules to Protect UK Consumers

11th April, 2018 (7 Comments)

The Government has today published a new Green Paper that proposes a number of changes to help protect consumers from bad practices, such as by simplifying Terms & Conditions (T&Cs), bundles and protecting people from “unexpected payments” that may arise via subscription services.

Northern Ireland Council Calls on Banks to Help Improve Broadband

6th April, 2018 (6 Comments)

The Fermanagh and Omagh District Council has written to First Trust Bank, Ulster Bank and Danske Bank in the hope of encouraging them to help invest in improvements to local broadband connectivity. Recently online banking has become much more important due to the closure of local branches.