Jayne Dowle: Any mum can tell you we need fast broadband

And, of course, with the kids' school closed for four long days, the internet helped out with impromptu home-schooling, from maths games to looking up the biggest country in the world, the coldest country in the world etc. I even started googling recipes for stew.

So it made me smile when I read a survey this week which claims that "modern mothers" – whoever they might be – spend an average of 92 minutes a day online. Top activities include emailing, catching up with friends on Facebook, checking the weather and accessing maps.

I love the bit about accessing maps, and wonder if it is code for "being nosey on Google Earth", looking up where far-flung acquaintances live and comparing the size of their gardens. Not that I have ever done that, you understand. But I could add a few more invaluable uses for the internet which the survey appears to have missed; shopping, obviously, hunting down addresses and postcodes for the Christmas card list which ended up the recycling bin by mistake, and obsessing about the symptoms of minor health problems. A GP friend says she dreads the words: "Well, I've read on the internet that…"

But more importantly, a significant proportion of mothers say that they go online to seek advice on parenting and to combat feelings of isolation. Four in 10 even do it in the middle of the night after being woken by their children. I don't recall ever doing that, being more likely to burrow back under the bedclothes where at least it's warm, but I can understand how the internet is so important in today's fractured society, when many of us live far from family and friends. Having a "virtual" friend to turn to can literally be a life-saver. It is clear to me, as it is to so many mothers, that good and reliable internet access is no longer a luxury, but a necessity. So the news that the Government is to spend 830m to give the UK the best broadband network in Europe by 2015 is welcome. And the possibility that Yorkshire will be at the heart of this is fantastic.

A super-fast "digital hub" will be created in every community, which will extend the network to every home. It is thought that rural areas, including Yorkshire, will be prioritised as test-beds. And goodness knows, we need it.

Around 10,000 rural businesses in our county are estimated to be lacking a decent internet service, and 10 per cent of households in the countryside have no service whatsoever. The gap between towns and cities and remote rural communities grows ever wider; proper internet provision could bridge that gap, and give our economy and entrepreneurs the boost so desperately needed.

There really is no argument against the fact that if we are to thrive and prosper in the 21st century, we need the best internet service possible. And it is not only small businesses and households which stand to benefit. I recognise that this sounds far-fetched, but I know from personal experience that tourists are put off visiting a place if they can't get broadband at their fingertips. Even on holiday, my techno-phile husband doesn't feel happy without his mobile broadband dongle. And let's not forget that the emergency services, so vital, especially when the weather is like it is, can't operate at their most dynamic without the benefit of reliable internet.

But... and it is a big but. The Government can't just roll out super-fast broadband without preparing us to make the most of it. It they do, then all they will achieve is to underline the differences between the haves and the have-nots. A staggeringly high number of people have no idea what to do with a computer, let alone actually own one.

We need to encourage hi-tech companies to come up with easy-to-use affordable models that don't require a degree in computer science to programme. We need to attract other companies to market and sell the most competitive broadband packages, and to make people aware of the internet opportunities which await. And we need reliable technical support for those inevitable days when the internet goes down.

If I was David Cameron, I'd get a task force to come up with a plan for a national IT support helpline. It could be privatised, it could make use of the infrastructure already in place through established business support networks, and it could learn some valuable lessons from inadequate services such as NHS Direct. However it works, if it doesn't happen, the chance to make such a vital connection will be missed.