S4M-15404 Broadband and Mobile Phone Coverage (Rural and Island Communities)

The Deputy Presiding Officer (John Scott): The final item of business is a debate on motion S4M-15404, in the name of Tavish Scott, on broadband and mobile phone coverage in rural and island communities. The debate will be concluded without any question being put.

Motion debated,

That the Parliament considers that reliable and affordable broadband and mobile phone coverage is essential for businesses and households looking to access a range of services; understands that the current Digital Scotland Superfast Broadband programme has vast regional variations, with only 75% of premises in Orkney and 77% of premises in Shetland being reached by the end of 2016 compared with the 95% target across Scotland as a whole by March 2018; further understands that “not-spots” in mobile phone coverage, including 2G and 3G, are far more common in rural and island communities; considers that the full implementation of superfast broadband and universal mobile phone coverage can counter falling population in outlying areas while bringing significant economic benefits; believes that plugging the remaining gaps in coverage is likely to require a range of different technologies, and notes calls for the Scottish Government to work with partners to find solutions for households and businesses in harder-to-reach communities and prioritise investment in those places that fall below the average or have no access to broadband and mobile phone coverage

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18:11

Stewart Stevenson (Banffshire and Buchan Coast) (SNP):

It is an absolutely immense privilege for each and every one of us to be elected as an MSP. This touches on the issue that we are debating tonight, but in my case, the particular privilege is that when I come to the Scottish Parliament, my broadband speed leaps by a factor of 800. Over the past 10 days, the median broadband speed at home has been 0.2Mbps. On Sunday, it took 40 minutes to book my railway ticket to journey to Parliament. That is not terribly good. My constituents are in a similar position.

The digital Scotland website tells us that exchange-only lines, to which reference has been made, are more prevalent in Aberdeenshire—Mr Johnstone should note that—and Dumfries and Galloway, just because of the history of how the telephone network was installed. However, let us not imagine that only rural areas are affected. Earlier, I was speaking to someone from Comely Bank, which is right in centre of Edinburgh, who is on an exchange-only line, too. Right across Scotland, exchange-only lines are a significant issue that denies people the ability to access services in the way that the majority are able to access them.

There is an economic value in ubiquity. On the day that everyone in Scotland is connected to a high-speed broadband connection, we should shut down all the communication methods that must continue in order to support low bandwidth connections—then we would save money centrally.

I have a solution. It is not a technological solution; it is a straightforward policy solution. The Scottish Government must install devices on its own internet connections that restrict the speed of those connections to the speed that prevails in the rural areas of Aberdeenshire, Shetland, Orkney, the Western Isles and Dumfries and Galloway. [Interruption.] I hear Mr Russell pleading that my list should include rural Argyll, too. If what I propose were to happen, I have a vague feeling that we might get things fixed.

Last year, my family had a pleasant holiday in Plockton, where we rented a cottage. I did not want to come home: the broadband speed was running at 6Mbps—20 times the speed that it was running at when I left home in Banffshire.

My wife and my dentist are the greatest proponents of our getting proper access to high-speed broadband, mainly because my wife does not like the sound of my chewing the edge of my desk in frustration; I am sure that members can work out my dentist’s concerns for my teeth.

The issue is not just broadband. Where I live, there is no mobile phone signal—2G, 1G, 3G or whatever the prevailing G is—and there is no Freeview access. I cannot even get satellite broadband, because the satellites, of which there are two, are not due south, so the angle of attack is 20.5° or 22° and the terrain stops me seeing them. I am not alone; people on that side of the hill cannot get satellite—not that it is as good as proper, fibre broadband.

I have costed the wholesale purchase of the fibre that would be needed to connect my house to the exchange, which is not that far away. It is £300. Well, I have got the 300 quid waiting.

18:15