The fact that the National Broadband Plan is set to miss its revised target of 60,000 homes by the end of the year has been described as another major blow for rural Ireland.
The Government has confirmed that just 35,000 homes will be passed by the end of the year, and that between 50 and 60,000 homes will be cleared to pre-order broadband by the end of January.
Confirmation of the latest setback was confirmed in the Dáil to the former Minister for communications, Denis Naughten TD.
As a result revised targets that were set in September have now been missed.
In a statement Deputy Naughten outlined how this will result in a further delay in the delivery of broadband to homes, which is now running 12 months behind target – six months more than was admitted to just last September.
The Roscommon East Galway Deputy added that “these delays are due, at least in part, to the failure of Government over the last two years to address bottlenecks within the planning and regulatory system”.
Leitrim Councillor Padraig Fallon says the latest setback will result in a further delay in the delivery of broadband to homes, and in the process misses out on opportunity to stop the decline of rural communities, and strengthen local economies:
