October 24, 2018 - - In Parliament this week David Warburton, MP for Somerton and Frome, met with broadband provider Gigaclear and Connecting Devon and Somerset (CDS) to demand why the company continues to fall radically behind with superfast broadband provision for Somerset despite promises of a swift and efficient rollout for the region.
In July this year, Gigaclear announced they were behind schedule with the Phase Two rollout but would catch up and deliver on time. Earlier this month, however, the company confirmed they are now in “significant delay” with the process, leaving thousands of Somerset residents and businesses continuing to suffer poor broadband speeds with little apparent prospect of knowing when superfast provision will be delivered.
David joined six other South West MPs in signing a joint letter to Keri Denton, Programme Director at CDS, condemning the organisation for their poor performance, inflexibility, slow action and lack of transparency (a copy of the letter is attached).
Taking his fight to the top, this week David met with Mike Surrey, Gigaclear’s Chief Executive, and Keri Denton, to deliver a clear message that the failure to deliver on time for Somerset residents is unacceptable.
David Warburton MP said, “The dreadful lack of progress in delivering superfast broadband for the region has been shocking and is one which cannot be allowed to continue. My south west MP colleagues and I have had enough; residents and businesses throughout the region have been suffering for too long in the face of failures to deliver, and we will no longer accept any excuses.”
He continues, “At our meeting I asked CDS and Gigaclear for a clear timetable for remedial action, so that the people of our area can look with some confidence towards the future of proper digital connectivity. I’m also asking the Government to ensure CDS continue to receive the funding necessary to extend the programme so that we can complete our full digital provision as quickly as possible. This situation is extremely damaging to the West Country, and needs to be addressed now.”