Broadband Blog

The Welsh Assembly Government is taking welcome steps to improve the quality of broadband internet access in rural parts of the country in the next few months.

The Broadband Support Scheme is an initiative that will allow individuals and communities in Wales to vie for up to £1,000 to gain access to at least 512Kbps even in the most remote areas.

The Assembly Government says that close to two thousand people have said that they do not even have the most basic form of broadband access in their locality. The new scheme has set aside an initial £2 million to tackle these so called ‘notspots’ and further funds are being chased from the EU by the Rural Development Plan (RDP) for Wales.

One of residents of Wales who has been vocal on the lack of broadband in certain areas of the country in the past is, Gareth Vaughan, the President of the Farmers’ Union of Wales. Earlier in 2010, Mr Vaughan brought attention to the ‘notspot’ issue when he said that he and many other farmers in Wales would not be able to fill in their VAT returns online due to lack of broadband access from internet providers. Speaking of the new initiative, Mr Vaughan praised the Welsh Assembly Government and said that it was a ‘step in the right direction.’

Ieuan Wyn Jones, the Deputy First Minister for the Welsh Assembly Government, said that they were dedicated to bringing more broadband coverage to rural parts of Wales. He said: “Broadband services are vital to ensure our country can develop the knowledge economy, improving the ability of businesses and individuals to network and innovate.”
We also welcome any moves to extend broadband infrastructure reach in rural parts of the UK and would like to see more internet providers tackle the issue. If you are lucky enough to have a good broadband service in your area but are not sure who provides the cheapest internet prices then take a look at our internet deals page to compare the best offers.

Tags : broadband access, wales broadband
This entry was posted on Tuesday, July 20th, 2010 at 10:00 pm and is filed under Home Broadband.
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