It has been covered heavily in the media recently that the government has plans to upgrade the UK’s broadband networks to ensure that all UK residents have access to speeds of at least 2Mbps. These plans have been criticised for not being bold enough.

An industry spokesman has stated that it is vital for the UK that we ensure the available broadband networks are competitive on a global level. It is felt that the government issued Digital Britain report lacks ambition. It is suggested that a major rethink needs to be undertaken to ensure that enough is done to plan for the future.

It is welcomed that the government are looking to update the plans for broadband access. The problem is that the true cost to provide the access is not known. It is also felt that the government should have a higher level for broadband provision. The base of 2Mbps is felt to be too low. There are many other European countries such as Germany and Sweden that have base speeds of 4.8Mbps and 7.4Mbps respectively.

Working to a base of 2Mbps will ensure that not all services can be fully utilised by Internet users.