Letter to Nora Radcliffe MSP, regarding the Broadband for Scotland's Rural and Remote Areas initiative

 

Dear Mrs Radcliffe,

 

I am writing to you on behalf of Broadband 4 Schivas, a group that has been campaigning for some time to have the exchange at Schivas (Ythanbank, Ellon) enabled for Broadband.  Despite achieving considerably more registered interests than some of the adjacent exchanges, BT decided that the exchange and area were too small to consider upgrading and bypassed the 145 households who were desperate to receive broadband.

 

We whole heartedly welcome the news announced yesterday by your colleague Jim Wallace that the overlooked exchanges in Scotland are now going to be upgraded to handle broadband.

 

As the constituency MSP for the area covered by Schivas exchange we are writing to you to seek your help and assistance in finally bringing broadband to this area.

 

Firstly, as you will see from BTs own league table of exchanges considered un-viable (below), Schivas has the greatest level of demand of any exchange in the UK.  This reflects the huge support and demand for broadband in this area. 

 

 

 

Individuals and businesses in this area have been crying out for broadband for the last two years, only to be met with the previously deaf ears of BT.  We feel strongly that demand levels should be taken into account when the Broadband enabling programme for the un-activated exchanges in Scotland is drawn up.  We are therefore seeking your support (and any possible influence you may have) to ensure that the wait for broadband for the subscribers on Schivas exchange is kept to a minimum.

 

Secondly, in the press release and FAQ published on the broadbandforscotland.co.uk website it mentions the following…

 

 

As a group, we have some concerns over the route chosen to enable our area for Broadband.  It appears from the above that of the 378 un-enabled exchanges, 230 of them will get a full ADSL broadband installation as used in all the exchanges enabled across the UK to date.  This permits connection speeds to the internet of 0.5, 1 and 2Mb (with the likelihood that further increases in connection speed will be forthcoming as BTs management of the broadband infrastructure improves).  The remaining 148 exchanges will achieve Broadband via the Exchange Activate route.  This is a partnership approach formed by BT in which a limited installation could be used to bring a limited broadband service to a community in association with an internet service provider, local business(es) or local authority.  The Exchange Activate route offers broadband at only one speed (0.5 Mb - the slowest and most basic) and has little or no path for upgrades even if broadband technology moves dramatically ahead in the future. 

 

Our concern, as you will no doubt appreciate, is that the exchange at Schivas is broadband enabled with the full ADSL installation rather than the far more limited Exchange Activate equipment.  We feel that as the exchange with the largest demand of any of the 378 to be enabled under this scheme, that we merit consideration for the full upgrade. 

 

Again we are seeking your assistance in:

a)      helping to find out from the programme mangers of the initiative, what sort of broadband installation has been allocated for the Schivas exchange and,

b)      applying any influence you may have to the programme managers to ensure that the Schivas exchange receives the full installation rather than the inferior Exchange Activate.

 

Scotland, and in particular this part of Gordon region, has been disadvantaged already through the lack of broadband availability. I’m sure you will agree that your constituents needn’t be disadvantaged further by being kept waiting any longer than is necessary or by being offered the inferior service compared to that offered elsewhere.

 

I’m sure you understand the prolonged frustrations of the Broadband-less areas.  We appreciate what ever support you are able to offer to help bring broadband to Schivas ‘sooner rather than later’.

 

We look forward to hearing from you regarding any support you can offer and in particular whether you have any news from your Executive colleagues regarding the nature and timing of the intended broadband installation for this area.

 

E Mail Reply from Nora Radcliffe MSP

Thank you for your e-mail and the attached letter. I will write to BT to ascertain what their plans are for the Schivas exchange, and to recommend strongly that there should be full ASDL provision...... I've always thought that we went about the broadband rollout the wrong way round - the emphasis should have been on the more remote in the first place, where it is most needed to counteract disadvantages of geography and scale.