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More UK broadband for bumpkins, but have-nots still ain’t happy

'An essential tool for all biz', says Countryside Alliance

Small enterprises have warned that delays in BT's rollout of rural broadband could push them out of business as the government announced that three million rural properties now have super-fast net access.

Dr Adam Marshall, policy director at the British Chambers of Commerce, told the Daily Mail: "No one should be patting themselves on the back. Across the UK, far too many businesses and consumers still have insufficient or unreliable broadband coverage, which stops entrepreneurs and exporters in their tracks. While many are in rural areas, 'not-spots' plague companies even near our major cities."

Sarah Lee, head of policy for the Countryside Alliance, told The Register: "Broadband is an essential tool for all businesses, but across the country, and particularly in the countryside, broadband coverage is patchy and unreliable. This lack of coverage is holding back rural businesses and stops them from prospering and supporting local economies."

Back in February this year, the then Culture Secretary, Sajid Javid, congratulated BT after the one-time state-owned monopoly announced the Broadband Delivery UK project (BDUK) had reached a whopping 80 per cent of Brits – while quietly glossing over the fact that the government previously announced it would reach 90 per cent by that point.

BDUK has a final target of reaching 95 per cent of the UK's population by the end of 2017, giving it about 18 months to finish inserting its fibres into the Great British Countryside.

In June BT returned £129m of broadband rollout funding to the government after takeup of broadband services exceeded expectations.

This money will be "reinvested into further coverage across the UK", in the words of the current Minister of Fun, Conservative MP John Whittingdale.

The Countryside Alliance's Lee took a swipe at the Tories' election slogan as she dismissed the government's plans, saying: "If the government wants to deliver its long-term economic plan then it needs to ensure that we have broadband connectivity that matches its ambitions." ®

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