Broadband rollout under fire
Torturously bad broadband provision in county Cork is currently the biggest issue being brought to local councillors, even bigger than the ongoing housing crisis.
That’s according to Fianna Fáil Councillor Frank O’Flynn who said he now gets up to six calls a day from his constituents regarding poor broadband service.
He said one or two calls a week would have been normal pre-Covid, but with so many now relying on internet in the county for work and education, that number has skyrocketed.
The councillor said: “I am calling for action. Broadband is nearly more important now than light and water.”
Cllr O’Flynn strongly condemned the lack of communication from National Broadband Ireland (NBI) and the slow roll-out of the National Broadband Plan and called for clarity on the issue.
He said that he had recently spoken with a student doing his PhD who had been unable to connect at a crucial time.
He then pointed out that due to the 5km travel restriction, many people are unable to travel to a location where they can find a reliable connection.
“I would call on the Minister for Finance to fast track the roll-out. Tell us exactly what's happening and when it's happening. It's torture for these people,” he said.
The meeting heard that the roll-out plan for the Cobh area had been pushed back for more than a year with many residents now forced to go to work due to unusable internet connections in the homes.
West Cork Cllr Paul Hayes accused the Government of making an “absolute hames” of the rollout and highlighted that, once completed, the State will not even own the new broadband network being installed by NBI.
There was some positivity however, with Carrigaline-based Councillor Seamus McGrath pointing out that homes in his area had become the first in the country to be connected under the National Broadband Plan.
He said that the multi-billion euro plan was not perfect but needs to be delivered fast.
The plan aims to provide reliable internet to 540,000 homes and businesses in the country currently suffering from poor connectivity.
According to the NBI website, Midleton and its surrounding townlands are to be the next Cork region connected under the plan, scheduled for sometime between December 2021 and May 2022.
Cllr McGrath added: “It is happening but we would all like to see it happening more quickly and more efficiently.”
Broadband wasn’t the only concern raised during the discussion, with Cllr Kevin Murphy underlining a lack of phone coverage in Bandon town.
“It's one of the biggest towns in the county and they can't even get mobile phone coverage,” said Cllr Murphy.
Overall, 79,424 premises in Cork (29 per cent of all premises in the county) will be connected through the plan making Cork by far the biggest benefactor of the National Broadband Plan.
The next closest in terms of premises to be connected is Galway with 38,714 premises.