A divided nation

The roll-out of universal broadband, and the mass enjoyment of the economic and social benefits which it brings, is sadly no different.

While people in most major urban settlements are already connected, many elsewhere, particularly in rural areas, have been excluded. The fact that half of the residents in Selby and Ainsty and at least 40 per cent of those in Richmond and Hull East do not have even 2Mps broadband access is lamentable.

The consequences are not just that life is made more complex. Communities lacking faster broadband risk being left behind culturally and economically. Poor telecoms infrastructure is one of the major obstacles to locating businesses outside towns and cities and those companies looking to expand, particularly start-ups, have little hope of doing so if they do not have fast and reliable means to place orders, speak to customers and keep up-to-date with their sector. The other concern must be that most of the constituencies which missed out on high-speed broadband, from Carlisle to Tyrone and Bassetlaw, are in deprived parts of the country. This underlines the need for Government investment because doing nothing risks entrenching Britain’s economic divide.

Labour, which produced these figures, is right to highlight the issue because it is an area in which spending is needed despite the cuts. Ed Miliband’s party would be foolish to shout its demands too loudly, however, given its recent dire record on managing major infrastructure projects. Not for the first time, Britons living outside urban areas have been let down by politicians.