Thursday Volume 669 16 January 2020 No. 11 HOUSE OF COMMONS OFFICIAL REPORT PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES (HANSARD) Thursday 16 January 2020 © Parliamentary Copyright House of Commons 2020 This publication may be reproduced under the terms of the Open Parliament licence, which is published at www.parliament.uk/site-information/copyright/. 1129 16 JANUARY 2020 1130 remains.The crucial issue is the universal service obligation, House of Commons of which she will be aware. Fifteen per cent. of her constituents get less than the 10 megabit limit. They will Thursday 16 January 2020 benefit from that later this year. Chi Onwurah (Newcastle upon Tyne Central) (Lab): The House met at half-past Nine o’clock This is my first questions session shadowing the Digital Minister,who, as a former tech journalist, knows something PRAYERS of his subject—and as a former telecoms engineer, so do I. We both know that in towns, villages and cities, everyone is suffering the consequences of a wasted [MR SPEAKER in the Chair] decade. Under Labour, we rolled out first-generation broadband to half of all homes within a decade. But today, full-fibre broadband only reaches a mere 10% of Oral Answers to Questions homes, and we languish at the bottom of all the international tables. The Prime Minister has promised full-fibre broadband for everybody in five years. Does the Minister have a plan for that? Who will be delivering DIGITAL, CULTURE, MEDIA AND SPORT it? How much will it cost? Will it really be fibre or just gigabit capability—or are Big Ben’s bongs the only The Minister of State was asked— telecoms infrastructure that he can plan for? Full-fibre and Gigabit-capable Broadband Matt Warman: As an engineer, I think the hon. Lady 1. Tracey Crouch (Chatham and Aylesford) (Con): will know that a bell is not telecoms infrastructure, but What steps her Department is taking to roll out full-fibre we will leave that to one side. The important issue that and gigabit-capable broadband to every home and business she raises is one on which there is some cross-party agreement. We are completely committed to rolling out throughout the UK by 2025. [900200] gigabit-capable networks across this country.That means The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Digital, building on the work of the superfast programme to Culture, Media and Sport (Matt Warman): I begin by ensure that we deliver the infrastructure needed across paying tribute to the former right hon. Member for the country. The plan for that will come forward. I hope Loughborough, who is now Secretary of State for Digital, she will welcome the news that, immediately after questions, Culture, Media and Sport from the Lords. She is still we will be heading to No. 10 to meet the broadband very much the Secretary of State, and following her providers, to ensure that the industry can come together elevation, she will shortly be watching us from the to deliver the best possible infrastructure, which this Public Gallery. She will take questions—[Interruption.] country needs. She will be here shortly. She will take questions in the Lords herself next week. Dr Dan Poulter (Central Suffolk and North Ipswich) I also pay tribute to my hon. Friend the Member for (Con): The universal service obligation is welcome to Chatham and Aylesford (Tracey Crouch). She asks my constituents in Suffolk and to many rural residents, about one of the few areas in the Department for but for rural businesses, the basic service commitment Digital, Culture, Media and Sport for which she was may well not be enough. What more can the Minister not responsible, but she knows how vital gigabit broadband do to support rural businesses that need a large amount will be across the whole country. Finally, I pay tribute to of broadband capacity to support their staff and expand the British people for rejecting Labour’s economically their businesses? and technologically illiterate broadband policy at the election. Matt Warman: My hon. Friend is right to welcome the universal service obligation. Schemes such as our Tracey Crouch: The Government’s ambition for full gigabit broadband voucher scheme allow businesses to fibre is to be applauded, but while coverage is generally access the far faster speeds that they need, and there is good across the majority of my constituency, I still provision in due course to review whether 10 megabits is receive regular complaints from residents and businesses sufficient for the USO. I would like to see it go up as that are unable to access even superfast broadband, soon as it can. including in significant pockets of urban areas such as Chatham, Aylesford, Ditton and Snodland, as well as more rural villages, where residents are deeply frustrated Cat Smith (Lancaster and Fleetwood) (Lab): Will the at the lack of coverage. With so many people and Minister congratulate my constituents who are involved businesses reliant on access to decent broadband, what with Broadband for the Rural North—B4RN—which assurances can the Minister give that the future roll-out prides itself on delivering full-fibre gigabit broadband, of broadband infrastructure will address those more not just gigabit-capable broadband, to thousands of localised notspots and that they will not simply be left properties in my constituency? Phil Hughes from B4RN behind? tells me that it is much cheaper sometimes to deliver this broadband in very rural areas than in semi-urban areas, Matt Warman: My hon. Friend is right that notspots where “in pavement” build is needed. Can the Minister are by no means confined to rural areas. Through the clarify that the Government’s new gigabit voucher scheme Government’s voucher scheme, we are covering all of will also work for smaller, community interest companies the country,and the 2025 commitment to gigabit broadband such as B4RN? 1131 Oral Answers 16 JANUARY 2020 Oral Answers 1132 Matt Warman: The hon. Member is absolutely right and that it provided “financial stability”. It saw BBC that B4RN does really great work and has been doing income boosted by requiring iPlayer users to have a so for a number of years. It has a huge amount of licence. We have unfrozen the licence fee for the first expertise that I hope we can learn from when it comes to time since 2010 and, in return for this, we agreed that working across the country. One of the issues that we responsibility for the over-75 concession would transfer will be raising at the summit that I mentioned, which we to the BBC in June 2020. The BBC needs to honour this will be heading to shortly, is street works. It is very agreement. important that that does not hold up works unnecessarily. She is of course also right to say that the voucher Dame Diana Johnson: I am sure that when the Minister scheme needs to apply equally across the country in a was, like me, knocking on doors in November, he was way that works wherever people live. struck by the number of older people who were living on their own who were relying on the TV for company. I David Duguid (Banff and Buchan) (Con): My think four out of 10 older people nationally do that—rely constituency of Banff and Buchan is among those with on the TV for company during the day and evenings. I the lowest coverage of superfast broadband in the whole heard what he said about being disappointed about United Kingdom. Aberdeenshire Council applied to what the BBC has done, but disappointment does not the UK Government for additional support. One of the butter any parsnips, so what is he actually going to do reasons it was declined, it was told, was that it was about this to make sure that older people can keep their assumed that that would be covered by the Scottish free TV licences? Government’s R100 programme—the Reaching 100% programme. Now that the Scottish Government have Nigel Adams: The hon. Lady makes a very good admitted that this is going to be at least two years point. It is really important that people over 75 who are behind, can we revisit the coverage in places such as on their own are able to get their TV licences paid, but I Banff and Buchan, with support from the UK Government, remind her of the words of the former shadow Secretary to make up for the shortfall left by the Scottish Government? of State, Tom Watson, who had the very good sense to leave this place before the election. He actually admitted Matt Warman: My hon. Friend is right to highlight that this was a decision for the BBC. In an interview the deeply disappointing delays to the R100 scheme with LBC in late 2018, he actually criticised the BBC for administered by the Scottish Government. I will shortly accepting this deal. I will say again that Lord Hall said be meeting my Scottish counterpart, Paul Wheelhouse, that the overall deal provided “financial stability”, and again to see how the Government can help the Scottish the Government to go further and faster, because they “government’s decision here to put the cost of the over-75s certainly need to. on us has been more than matched by the deal coming back for the BBC.” Free TV Licences Tourism Industry 2. Ruth Jones (Newport West) (Lab): If she will make it her policy to maintain free TV licences for people over the age of 75. [900201] 3. Lee Rowley (North East Derbyshire) (Con): What steps her Department is taking to support the tourism 15.