Sunday Times: TDs discover the broadband revolution has failed them

damien

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2091-2220345,00.html

THE broadband revolution can’t come soon enough for the country’s TDs and senators. One-fifth of Oireachtas members who were invited by Eircom to have high-speed internet installed in their constituency offices or homes discovered the service wasn’t available in their area.

When Eircom won the contract to supply the service last year, 152 of the country’s 226 TDs and senators applied for the broadband service. But 30 of those who requested it failed the line test, meaning they were unable to get broadband. Since then the numbers waiting for the service have been reduced to 18.

Paudge Connolly, an Independent TD for Cavan-Monaghan, is one of those who applied for broadband under the Oireachtas scheme. He wanted it supplied to his home office in Silverstream but has yet to get it.

“I asked about nine months ago, but have heard nothing since,” he said. “My constituency office in Monaghan has it but I want it at my house three miles outside the town and it doesn’t seem to be available.”

The failure is an embarrassment for Eircom, which is sensitive to claims that it is responsible for the slow take-up of broadband across the country. It said the Oireachtas experience illustrates the difficulties of providing broadband in isolated areas.

“The fact that some TDs could not get broadband on their phone line is reflective of the constraints of technology nationwide,” the company said. “About 85% of lines are connected to broadband-enabled exchanges, and within that there are some who would be unable to get broadband owing to problems with the line or distance.”

This Wednesday, Noel Dempsey, the communications minister, faces questioning on the roll out of broadband by the joint Oireachtas committee on communications. “All of the TDs and senators should be connected to the main server because it gives them access to all the information in the Oireachtas,” said Noel O’Flynn, the committee’s chairman.

Jimmy Deenihan, the Fine Gael TD for Kerry North, said he hadn’t applied for broadband under the Oireachtas scheme because he knew it wasn’t available where his constituency office is in Finuge, about three miles outside Listowel.

“What was the point applying? You have access to broadband in many parts of Kerry but my office is based about 4km away from the nearest point where it is available. I can cope without it by doing a lot of my work in Dublin, but obviously I would prefer to have it,” he said.

Denis Naughten, Fine Gael TD for the Longford Roscommon constituency, was one of the first Oireachtas members to get broadband under the scheme.

“I was able to get it because my constituency office is in Roscommon town. If I was based at my father’s house in Drum I wouldn’t have been able to get it,” he said.

Vint Cerf of Google, which has established its European headquarters in Dublin, said last March that Irish people were not getting the full benefits of being online because of the lack of high-speed access. “Ideally everyone should be able to access the internet at high speeds and that’s not the case now,” he said.

The Labour party has attributed problems with broadband supply and uptake to government, market and regulation failure.

“It’s an appalling statistic. It really does show we are struggling to get ino the basic league of broadband,” said Tommy Broughan, Labour TD for Dublin North East.

mike65

Finally, the breakthrough in awareness!

Mike.

gordonnet

now they know whats its been like for us for the last number of years