Thirty-Second Report - Delivering gigabitcapable broadband

Select Committee

Public Accounts Committee HC 743 19 January 2022

Report Status Government responded

Conclusions & Recommendations 27 items (5 recs)

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Government Response (AI assessment · 27 of 27 classified)

Accepted 10

Acknowledged 8

Deferred 6

Not Addressed 3

Government response

Treasury minutes: Government response to the Committee of Public Accounts on the Thirty Second report from Session 2021-22 · published 28 Apr 2022

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Recommendations & Conclusions

8 results

8 Conclusion Acknowledged

In changing its target, it has also made changes to the type of technology it...

Conclusion

In changing its target, it has also made changes to the type of technology it plans to use to achieve gigabit broadband rollout.19 In 2019, the Department revised its target from full fibre to “gigabit-capable” broadband. Some stakeholders considered this … Read more

Government Response Summary

The government highlights the UK's progress in gigabit connectivity, the number of companies involved, and the coverage achieved to date, attributing it to clear targets and a competitive regulatory environment.

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9 Conclusion Acknowledged

In its letter to us ahead of our evidence session, the Department told us that...

Conclusion

In its letter to us ahead of our evidence session, the Department told us that there had been a rapid increase in nationwide gigabit coverage to 57% coverage in October 2021, up from 34% in November 2020.23 However, the most … Read more

Government Response Summary

The government provides updated statistics on gigabit and full fibre coverage as of March 2022, attributing contributions to Virgin Media O2, Openreach, and alternative network providers.

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10 Conclusion Acknowledged

The Department expects commercial operators will supply broadband infrastructure where profitable, and that this will...

Conclusion

The Department expects commercial operators will supply broadband infrastructure where profitable, and that this will provide up to 80% of the UK’s coverage.27 To achieve the additional coverage needed to meet its 85% target, the Department plans to provide subsidies … Read more

Government Response Summary

The Department expects commercial operators will supply broadband infrastructure where profitable and is working with these operators to provide subsidies to build gigabit infrastructure in less commercially viable areas and is providing funding through the gigabit voucher scheme as immediate help for people experiencing slow broadband speeds in rural areas.

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11 Conclusion Acknowledged

The Department has yet to sign the gigabit infrastructure contracts with commercial suppliers under which...

Conclusion

The Department has yet to sign the gigabit infrastructure contracts with commercial suppliers under which it would provide public subsidy for them to build in areas that would otherwise not get coverage as they are less commercially viable.31 The dates … Read more The Department has yet to sign the gigabit infrastructure contracts with commercial suppliers under which it would provide public subsidy for them to build in areas that would otherwise not get coverage as they are less commercially viable.31 The dates by 22 Q 17, Virgin Media O2 bolsters future network with fibre upgrade plan - Virgin Media O2 23 Correspondence from Sarah Healey, Permanent Secretary, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, re broadband report, dated 22 October 2021 24 Qq 16, 28; Connected Nations Update: Summer 2021, 9 September 2021 page 3 25 Letter from Sarah Healey to PAC Chair Dame Meg Hillier Re: Improving Broadband, 23 November 2021 26 DRB0014 DCMS recall (Broadband), Gigaclear, November 4, p.1 27 Project Gigabit: Phase One Delivery Plan – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) 28 Q 6–7 29 Q 31, known as GigaHubs; provide up to £110m infrastructure funding to public buildings in the ‘hardest to reach’ to improve services and incentivise broadband companies to build off these networks. 30 Q 6, 30, 60, 71, Correspondence from Sarah Healey, Permanent Secretary, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, re broadband report, dated 22 October 2021 31 DCMS, Project Gigabit Phase One Delivery Plan, March 2021, p. 6 and DCMS, Project Gigabit Delivery Plan Autumn Update, October 2021, p. 12 12 Delivering gigabit-capable broadband which the Department reports that it expects to sign gigabit infrastructure contracts have changed on several occasions. At our last evidence session in November 2020, the Department told us that it expected contracts to be operating in the last quarter of 2021.32 In the Department’s summer update on progress, this was changed to May 2022.33 In its Autumn update, this was changed again to between June and August 2022.34 We asked the Department if it was able to give us a guarantee about when new contracts would be signed for the hardest to reach areas. It was unable to give us any guarantees but told us it had published its lat Show less

Government Response Summary

BDUK reported launching its first six procurements for up to 187,400 premises and provided its procurement pipeline for up to 2.3 million more premises to be included in contracts awarded by the end of 2024.

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13 Conclusion Acknowledged

We asked the Department about concerns among some of our constituents who are feeling increasingly...

Conclusion

We asked the Department about concerns among some of our constituents who are feeling increasingly left behind as a result of private sector roll-out to the more commercially viable parts of constituencies. We asked it why its planning was slipping … Read more

Government Response Summary

BDUK balances the need to be dynamic and responsive to the market’s plans while maintaining a minimum level of certainty that suppliers will build viable networks to uncommercial areas and consequently ensure appropriate value for money.

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15 Conclusion Acknowledged

The Department’s answers during our more recent evidence session suggested that it is still not...

Conclusion

The Department’s answers during our more recent evidence session suggested that it is still not making progress at pace in tackling barriers to gigabit roll out. For example, the Telecommunications Infrastructure (Leasehold Property) Act 2021 (TILPA) received Royal Assent on … Read more

Government Response Summary

The department has introduced the Product Security and Telecommunications Infrastructure Bill, worked with DfT and industry to implement and trial further reforms to streetworks and permitting, published a statutory technical consultation on ‘new build’ home gigabit-capable connectivity, introduced changes to permitted development rights, and taken steps to make it easier and quicker to deploy mobile equipment on local authority buildings and street furniture.

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23 Conclusion Acknowledged

In our January 2021 report, we found that the most difficult to reach areas were...

Conclusion

In our January 2021 report, we found that the most difficult to reach areas were not neatly grouped together, and the Department was not yet clear how it would prioritise its interventions to ensure that they are served. As the … Read more

Government Response Summary

BDUK will publish its profile to reach at least 5% of non-commercial premises by the end of 2025 in its 2022-23 corporate plan and will continue to publish quarterly updates on its pipeline of Gigabit Infrastructure Subsidy contracts. A call for evidence was made to explore all possible options for improving broadband connectivity for these Very Hard to Reach premises, and the government published its response in February 2022.

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24 Conclusion Acknowledged

The Department asserted that where there are variations found within urban areas, those pockets which...

Conclusion

The Department asserted that where there are variations found within urban areas, those pockets which are currently unviable are expected to be covered by commercial operators over the course of the next few years. However, should that not be the … Read more

Government Response Summary

In March 2021, a call for evidence was made to explore all possible options for improving broadband connectivity for Very Hard to Reach premises, and the government published its response in February 2022. This evidence will be used to assess policy options to understand how best to address the small minority of premises that will be beyond the scope of the programme, and the department will publish further details later this year.

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