The runner-up in BBC1's 2008 series of The Apprentice, Claire Young, has teamed up with the Country Land and Business Association (CLA) to help fight its campaign for effective UK rural broadband Internet access. Claire has experience of managing a rural business hampered by poor broadband, she runs Elegant Venues, an exclusive wedding venue company based in Daventry, Northamptonshire.



Claire Young doesn't explain precisely how her business has been affected and it would have been useful to read a greater explanation. Still the plight of rural broadband is certainly well known and having an extra identifiable voice in support can only be a good thing.

June's Digital Britain report proposed to solve this problem by making a minimum broadband speed of 2Mbps available to everybody by 2012 (here), though it was unable to flesh out much in the way of specifics. The report also appeared to concentrate too much on speed and not enough on reliability of the connection, affordability, upload performance and latency.

For those unfamiliar with The Apprentice, it's that unsettlingly addictive TV show in which an annoying bunch of people get put through their paces by an equally annoying boss.. and then they get sacked, which is eerily similar to real-life.