Exclusive: UK 'poor man of Europe' on rural internet

Hear informed debate on this story in the Country Week programme from the Yorkshire Post

One in five people living in rural Yorkshire wants to see broadband provision tackled as a priority, with around 10 per cent of households in the region's countryside having no access whatsoever.

Failure to tackle the issue means that rural areas of Britain face becoming increasingly divided from towns and cities, with one campaigner warning that poor broadband connections are causing both economic and social damage to rural communities.

The Government is committed to establishing universal access by 2015, having already abandoned a previous deadline of 2012, while trials to establish high-speed internet access for rural areas – including one in Yorkshire – were announced earlier this year.

However, several other countries in Europe, among them Finland, Italy and Spain, have either made or are in the process of making far more stringent commitments to establishing universal broadband access for all of their citizens, regardless of where they live. They will require broadband providers to meet a universal service obligation to supply all areas in order to be allowed to operate.

Already Italy, Germany, France and Spain have more premises with superfast broadband than the UK and there is mounting concern that the European Union may issue a regulation requiring all member states to provide universal access, which would leave the UK with a "lot of catching up to do" according to one study.

The authors of a recent report into broadband by the Government's rural watchdog, the Commission for Rural Communities (CRC), said: "There is a risk that the Government's universal service commitment may not be sufficient to meet European standards".

They added that the Government should focus less on super-fast access for limited areas in major cities and more on establishing a minimum level of coverage for everyone.

The CRC study showed that poor broadband access and mobile phone reception made rural areas commercially unattractive compared with urban areas as infrastructure costs are higher, with lower population densities making it a "poor base for investment".

The report said: "In order to compete on a level playing field with their urban counterparts and globally, the gap between urban and rural connectivity and capacity needs to be closed." It added that a lack of coverage also served to put off tourists and presented safety issues as people are unable to contact emergency services in the event of an accident.

Charles Trotman, head of rural business development with the Country Land and Business Association, said: "In my house I need the internet for work while my children need it for their homework and things like Facebook. There are communities all over the country who are in a similar position.

"If we had a commitment made to have access for all by 2012 it would have set the stage and framework. If we do not get this the divide between rural and urban will only get wider.

"The potential for rural businesses to act dynamically and to help with improving the economy is not there at all.

"What will be really interesting is if the EU makes a regulation telling countries to make it legal. The trials announced by Government are welcome as it is important that it is established what works."

Details of how the Government trials will work are expected early next month.

The Yorkshire Post understands that contracts will be signed early next year with work to begin in the summer. A Department of Culture, Media and Sport spokesman said: "We hope to publish further details on the new broadband strategy before the end of the year."