Government launches £400m fund for 1Gbps broadband

The Government has officially launched a £400m fund to encourage investment in ‘full fibre’ broadband, promising speeds of 1Gbps to households and businesses.

This is broadband that delivers via fibre-optic cables straight to the doorstep, rather than ending in streetside cabinets, from where copper cables take over. Only one million UK premises currently receive ‘full fibre’ – around two per cent of the total.

BT Openreach believes it can double this number by the end of 2020, though by then it also aims to provide 330Mbps to 10 million more premises using its copperbased G.fast technology.

Chancellor Philip Hammond announced the Digital Infrastructure Investment Fund last November in the Autumn Statement. It will be invested in companies installing fibre broadband across the UK, with the aim of attracting a further £600m from other firms.

The Government hopes it will boost investment from small companies who have been putting off spending money because they were unsure how much public demand there was for faster broadband. This has left customers with “limited choice”, the Treasury said.

Unveiling the fund Andrew Jones MP, Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, said: “If we become better connected – whether physically or intellectually, through our transport links or our digital connections – the benefits to our society and our economy will be transformational”.

But Labour criticised the Government for “announcing the same policy three times”, referring to the fund’s inclusion in the Autumn Statement, and the Spring Budget in March.

Labour’s deputy leader Tom Watson accused the Government of not “keeping pace with developments in the industry”. He added: “The reality remains that we are on track to have just seven per cent full fibre coverage by 2020. It’s not good enough and it’ll leave Britain in the slow lane for years to come”.