Full Fibre Broadband for all - (Fibre To The Premises)
Many businesses will not rise from the ashes of COVID and sadly countless thousands of Scots will join the ranks of the unemployed. We have however learned two things in recent weeks. Firstly the NHS is the beating heart of the Country and secondly, excellent broadband connectivity is essential for a fully inclusive society to function efficiently and fairly. Those fortunate enough to excellent broadband have continued to work from home perfectly well and many corporations have realised that they do not require expensive office blocks in the middle of the city for business to proceed as normal. Individuals have enjoyed not having to sit in traffic for hours each day to get to the office or catch the "red eye" flight to London. The Scottish economy is now in tatters as is the rest of the Globe but what we do with the little capital available post COVID is critical. It should be redirected from Transport to Digital.
Why the contribution is important
There is a vast amount of evidence to support the view that the return of investment on digital infrastructure in excellent. The Digital Scotland Superfast Broadband being just one example where £12 was returned for every £1 invested. Full Fibre not only gives every Scot the opportunity to undertake highly skilled and highly paid employment, this can be done regardless of location. Social inclusion becomes a reality rather than a few words on a manifesto. Service like remote medical diagnostics become a reality, our children can have access to the best educational tools, the list of benefits is simply as long as ones imagination. Austerity is not the way to kick start the economy post COVID but nor is spending scarce capital on dualling roads that aren't justifiable on economic grounds. Spend the money on infrastructure where the whole of Scotland can realise the benefits.
by WOODSM4 on May 05, 2020 at 02:31PM
Posted by Hammy May 05, 2020 at 15:24
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Posted by DevVeh May 05, 2020 at 19:28
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Posted by SaveOurBees May 06, 2020 at 06:25
Why pour billions into road projects that we don’t need and will lock us into a carbon economy when a high speed broadband network can provide a platform for sustainable growth?
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Posted by LAnderson May 06, 2020 at 14:31
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Posted by KevinDrain May 07, 2020 at 08:43
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Posted by markcoyle May 07, 2020 at 08:56
Let Scotland lead by example.
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Posted by john41 May 07, 2020 at 08:58
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Posted by LloydE May 07, 2020 at 18:47
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Posted by MarkR May 07, 2020 at 18:56
If there is one silver lining of this horrible pandemic, it's that people have perhaps realised that we can break our dependence on the car and commuting to towns and cities with everyone else to physically work "in the same place".
Let's use this situation to jump start a new normal and not return to outdated ideas of large unnecessary new roads as our way to build ourselves out of the economic doldrums.
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Posted by Lozz65 May 07, 2020 at 22:39
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Posted by car56 May 08, 2020 at 16:46
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Posted by gws1380 May 08, 2020 at 17:40
Most importantly, we could start to alleviate pressure from the NHS by taking patients out of hospitals and doctors waiting rooms by providing reliable digital consultations amongst other online services.
The Scottish Government has already declared a climate emergency but has remained committed to building new roads instead of focusing on getting people to travel more wisely. Giving society the ability to function efficiently from home instead of giving us a new road of questionable economic return certainly gets my vote.
Well done and good idea WOODSM4.
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Posted by AlexMack May 08, 2020 at 17:57
Building a proper connectivity infrastructure will be essential to the recovery of the ecomony. New ways of working have emerged during this crisis and it has highlighted that being able to access good broadband is so important for our communities and will help so many rural communities thrive in the future
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Posted by DPert May 08, 2020 at 18:27
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Posted by RobertDG May 09, 2020 at 08:31
We have been trying to manage three businesses with 50+ employees for the last two months on a terrible connection. In addition our two children have been remote schooling which is killing our connection.
We totally understand that the safety of the Openreach engineer is vital. But with the right guidelines surely it is possible for them to install inside the home.
For example:
- we could vacate that area of the house for 72 hours (which is possible)
- they could install a temporary connection outside
- they could pass the connection box through the window as a temporary measure
I do realise that we are incredibly lucky to have fibre, even though it isn't connected. But these restrictions on completing the connection are harming our ability to work and educate. I wonder how many other businesses are suffering the same fate.
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Posted by JMac May 09, 2020 at 13:10
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Posted by lesbruce May 09, 2020 at 14:26
To this end a reliable, fast broadband system is absolutely essential. That can only be done by investing in a full fibre network. Where I live, only 1.5 miles from Whiteford, Pitcaple there are approx. 25 houses (incl some home offices) which are served by a copper cable over the last 1.5 miles. Average speed ~ 12Mbps with frequent drop-outs. Simply not good enough.
What is the point of spending millions dualling the nearby A96 when peoples' work practices are obviously going to alter? That money has to be redirected to vastly improving the broadband network to cope with increased digital traffic. This would also work hugely in the reduction of carbon emissions and help provide extra funding towards the Health Service. It's a no-brainer!
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Posted by jwhyte1 May 09, 2020 at 14:58
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Posted by Logie May 09, 2020 at 17:03
We agree with WOODS4M. It is time to look ahead with fresh eyes and fresh hopes. If COVID has taught us nothing else, we need to roll out high speed internet communications for all of Scotland, and not more big roads.
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Posted by jcgreenhalgh May 10, 2020 at 16:34
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Posted by KLRkir May 11, 2020 at 15:07
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Posted by HectorNG May 11, 2020 at 15:37
My neighbour less than half a mile away has FTTP but we don't and our 4G speed is little better than the copper we have to use.
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Posted by Scottmw_99 May 11, 2020 at 20:00
After noticing an article on BBC news discussing the ongoing conflict in government between those who seek to improve internet connections and those who wish to build more large roads, I couldn't help but be utterly bewildered. Why on earth, when we are trying to cut down on emissions and become more eco friendly, would we even consider building new roads? The very concept seems quite frankly moronic to me. I don't believe there should be any debate here.
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Posted by SeanCorrie May 11, 2020 at 20:11
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Posted by IMcK May 11, 2020 at 20:47
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Posted by Brett May 11, 2020 at 21:03
As a result of the pandemic perhaps allow for referrals to the broadband scheme and for mobile networks to expand the scheme yet further.
Enabling discounted or free access for the shielded group would be a good starting point.
Perhaps providing a mobile phone with the ability to make and receive video calls to reduce the level of loneliness at the basic level. Right up to including broadband installation and training/support beyond.
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