Malcolm Corbett, CEO of the Independent Networks Co-operative Association, said:

"Many people live in parts of the UK where broadband still isn’t available or cannot deliver the performance they need to become fully engaged online. And already many countries are moving on to the next level – broadband over optical fibre – to enable video-rich applications and entertainment, to facilitate small businesses and home working, and to support multiple users in each household.

The UK has been slow to deploy next-generation access and fibre-to-the-home. As a country we do not feature in the FTTH Rankings – a league table of nations where at least 1% of households subscribe to broadband over fibre connections. Indeed, analysts estimate that the UK lags the leading fibre nations like Japan and Sweden by at least five years.

The cost of delivering next-generation access is high and reaching 100% coverage is currently beyond the scope of the major private sector players. This means that without co-ordinated regional and local action, many areas will be left without high-speed broadband for many years to come.

INCA’s vision is to achieve 100% coverage as quickly as possible, nobody left behind."