Following the Commission for Rural Communities' report highlighting the lack of high-speed internet in rural areas, the Local Government Association has drawn attention to proposals submitted to the Government that would see millions of homes across Britain getting faster broadband connections.

 

Under plans from Mid-Sussex Council, broadband services would be made the subject of a legal minimum requirement in the same way that access to other services, for example water, already are. The council says this would help people in rural areas to shop online, access council services and even start their own business.

 

The council suggests that the minimum speed should be higher than the 2 megabits per second (Mbps) proposed in the Government's Digital Britain white paper, published earlier this year. The current national average is 4.1Mbps, according to Ofcom.

 

Almost half of councils in the UK are identified as mostly or partly rural by the Government. The proposals have been put to the Government as part of the latest round of the Sustainable Communities Act, under which councils put forward their ideas for new laws that they think will improve their area.

 

The proposals follow research by the LGA published last year which showed that:

- The number of people chasing every job in rural areas increased almost four-fold in the previous twelve months
- Almost nine in ten councils in rural areas saw an increase in empty shops in the previous six months and of these almost two in three thought it had a significant or moderate impact on their town centres

Cllr Andrew Bowles, Chairman of the LGA Rural Commission, said:

"A fast internet connection is quickly becoming essential to everyday life. From doing business to banking online, researching homework or just downloading music, high speed broadband would change the lives of people and boost businesses in rural areas across the country."

 

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