Nearly 200,000 “forgotten homes” across the UK are being left behind in the government’s digital switchover, unable to access broadband speeds that are considered the minimum to meet today’s household needs .
The telecoms regulator Ofcom has said that 190,000 homes and most offices, around 0.6% of premises, cannot access “reasonable” broadband speeds of at least 10Mbps.
This is the minimum speed deemed necessary to meet today ‘s needs, from downloading a movie on Sky to streaming music or TV services from Netflix to Disney +.
Ofcom ‘s annual United Nations report estimates that 119,000 properties in England do not have access to proper broadband. The figure is 34,000 in Scotland, 18,000 in Wales and 19,000 in Northern Ireland.
Last year the Commons’ environment, food and rural affairs select committee said rural residents were at risk of becoming “second-class” citizens in the digital switchover, as people in urban areas benefit from next generation and 5G mobile broadband.
Ofcom’s latest report finds that more than 39,000 households across England, Scotland and Wales cannot access “reasonable” broadband service or good in-house 4G mobile coverage.
Addressing the UK’s status as a global laggard in the roll-out of next-generation full-fiber broadband, making it available nationwide by 2025 was a key commitment in Boris Johnson’s election manifesto. Since then, the government has reduced their commitments to 85% coverage, including homes that can access similar gigabit speed technology through 5G network signals and copper wires as well as full fiber.
In a government spending review last month, chancellor Rishi Sunak said only £ 1.2bn of £ 5bn of funding would be available to subsidize the roll-out of gigabit broadband to the most difficult-to-reach buildings. now over the next five years.
Ofcom revealed that 18% of UK households, around 5m, have the capacity to access full fiber broadband, an increase of 80% year on year. Nearly 8 m homes in the UK, 27% of the total, can now access gigabit speed broadband.
“For millions of families this year, life at lockout would have been even more difficult without reliable broadband to work, learn, play and see loved ones,” said Lindsey Fussell , Ofcom ‘s network and communications director. “So it’s encouraging that gigabit-proof broadband is now available in a quarter of homes.”