Analyst firm Point Topic has released a new map of the United Kingdom (UK) that breaks the country down into its various political constituencies. The map shows how much it would cost in extra government money (subsidy) to rollout a next generation broadband network to each area.

The map estimated how much annual subsidy would be needed for each of the UK's 650 parliamentary constituencies to support rollout of Next Generation Access (NGA) to at least 90% of all homes and businesses. It suggests that funding of somewhere between £130m and £170m per year should be enough.

We note that Labour's 50p +vat per month (Next Generation Fund) tax on all fixed telephone lines aims to rake in about £175m per year. Meanwhile the Conservative's plan to use 3.5% of the BBC's existing TV Licence fee (Digital Switchover Budget) is closer to the £130m side.

It doesn't take a genius to work out that the need will be highest in the most rural areas, but many suburbs and smaller towns will also require significant intervention to achieve NGA coverage of 90% or more.

Areas which are expected to need a subsidy exist in every part of the UK. Indeed urban areas account for 44% of the homes and businesses out of easy range of NGA, 3.1 million out of a total of 7.1 million.

The cash, regardless of which solution you prefer, would most likely help finance loans to Next Generation Access (NGA) rollout projects that would typically combine private and public capital. It’s worth noting that much of the Conservative party support comes from areas that might take longer to reach under Tory plans.

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