(Image Credit: Bernard Sharp)
Beverley and Holderness MP Graham Stuart, who chairs the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Rural Services, criticised the poor broadband coverage experienced by many rural businesses in a debate in Parliament this week.
He raised the local case of Agenda Security Services, which is based in Burstwick. They have not been connected as part of the Government’s superfast broadband programme. As a result, they have had to invest tens of thousands of pounds in installing their own broadband infrastructure.
Graham said: “Twenty-five percent of all businesses in England are based in rural areas—a greater proportion than that of the population—and yet companies such as Agenda Security Services in my constituency have had to invest tens of thousands of pounds to get any kind of usable service, while their counterparts in cities have no such disadvantage.”
Commenting after the debate, he added: “Whether you live in the city or in the countryside, broadband is now an essential utility. Yet too many businesses in rural areas don’t have access to the broadband they need to expand. Last year just 14% of the properties in Beverley and Holderness had access to superfast broadband. Thanks to the Government’s investment and the hard work of the East Riding of Yorkshire Council, this figure is improving – but there is still a lot of work left to do.
“Over the past year, I have met representatives from Sky, BT, Broadband Delivery UK, and the East Riding of Yorkshire Council, and urged them to get on with delivering the Government’s target for 95% superfast broadband coverage by 2017. Broadband provision is a vital issue for rural areas like Beverley and Holderness, and I will continue to challenge the providers, the Council and the Government to install this vital infrastructure which families and businesses rely on.”
Norman Mortell, Director of Operations, Agenda Screening Services, said: “Agenda Screening Services would like to thank Graham Stuart MP for his crucial and continued support on improving the access to Superfast Broadband for businesses in rural locations. The access to Superfast Broadband is critical for our business to compete in the global market. Mr Stuart’s presentation of our case in the House of Commons has increased the awareness of the issues and extremely high costs businesses must face when there is a lack of access to high speed broadband in the local area.”
