A number of rural communities received positive news on broadband this week following pressure applied on the government by Penrith and The Border MP, Dr Neil Hudson.
The projects run by Broadband for the Rural North (B4RN) in Penrith and The Border had been put on hold while the procurement process for Project Gigabit was agreed. Following various discussions Between Dr Hudson, Ministers and Government officials it was agreed to place communities in ‘deferred scope’ for the regional supplier procurement and will be eligible for vouchers throughout the procurement process.
Dr Hudson said:
“I was thrilled to hear that 12 of the 13 B4RN projects in Penrith and The Border are still going to get connected through the gigabit voucher scheme. This means over 2785 properties will benefit from full fibre broadband through this fantastic community-based Network.
I have worked directly with B4RN and the Government to ensure the voucher scheme remained in place for these hard-to-reach communities. Following visits to the Mallerstang and Ravenstonedale projects recently, I was inspired by the passion and dedication of the B4RN staff and the volunteers to see these projects completed. I am delighted that this will now happen.
This will help enable residents and businesses across the constituency to reap the benefits of being at the forefront of our Project Gigabit programme. We all know the importance of digital connectivity, whether for work or schooling and the more houses that are connected to a decent broadband a higher standard of living can be achieved ”
B4RN Chief Executive Michael Lee commented:
“The creatIon of voucher priority areas will enable B4RN to continue delivering fibre optic infrastructure to many, but not all, of our communities, alongside the Project Gigabit procurement process.
This is a pragmatic solution that was only reached thanks to the combined effort of the Cumbrian MPs and B4RN communities.”
