Fiona Bruce MP Welcomes Super Switch On Day at Holmes Chapel on 18th December
There is nothing more frustrating than a slow or unreliable internet connection. It can stop you being able to work from home, expand your business or watch your favourite TV programmes online.
That’s why this Government is making sure that people around the country, especially in rural communities, get access to superfast broadband.
Over 10,000 more homes and businesses are being connected every week as a result of the national superfast broadband programme. This week marks a massive milestone locally – the switch on of superfast broadband in Cheshire for the first time, just in time for Christmas.
Super Switch on Day sees the village of Holmes Chapel “switch on”, and over the coming months more and more of Cheshire will start enjoying faster broadband speeds as our rollout reaches more and more locations around the county and across the country.
By March 2015 an additional 68,000 of Cheshire’s homes and businesses will have access to superfast speeds as a result of Government investment. With a return of £20 benefit for every £1 of taxpayers’ money spent - that’s great value for money for people in our local communities, many of whom I know have been frustrated for years at our local slow broadband speeds.
Altogether more than £1.2bn of public money is being invested to bring superfast broadband to homes and businesses in areas of the country that would otherwise be left behind, stuck in the digital slow lane.
This will provide faster downloading of films and movies; video chats with relatives; enhanced online shopping; long distance learning; opportunities to work from home and homework support for our young people.
It will also improve remote access to NHS and other public services and increase productivity for SME businesses. Everyone stands to benefit from this Government’s investment in superfast broadband.
By March 2015, 94 per cent of Cheshire homes will be able to access superfast speeds. We’ve also committed another £260m specifically to help us reach the final tranche of properties in some the hardest to reach locations and are currently looking at which technologies we can use to provide them with superfast access. Taken together, this county, and our country’s future, is going to be much better connected.
I am particularly pleased that the Government has listened to the concerns I have continuously expressed both inside and outside Parliament on behalf of my constituents: - “investment in superfast broadband is the single greatest action that can be taken to drive economic growth and improve the quality of life of residents.”
