Brighton and Hove broadband fight goes on (From The Argus)
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Brighton and Hove broadband fight goes on
11:50am Thursday 19th January 2012 in Business News By James Wallin
Business leaders and politicians have vowed to continue pushing for Brighton and Hove to become a ‘super connected’ city.
The Secretary of State for Culture, Jeremy Hunt, has refused to let the city bid for a £100 million fund to roll out superfast broadband in UK cities.
He said Brighton and Hove narrowly failed to meet the threshold of 150,000 homes but vowed he would work with city leaders to nurture its reputation as a “technology and culture hub”.
Brighton and Hove has 125,000 dwellings.
Supporters of The Argus’ Let Brighton Bid campaign have expressed disappointment but are already pushing for a meeting with Mr Hunt to find out exactly what he can do for the city.
Mr Hunt said: “It is great to see such enthusiasm for ultrafast broadband in Brighton. This particular scheme is limited to the largest cities, but I would like to work with the city to see how it can meet its brilliant ambition to turn heads as a technology and culture hub.”
MPs' backing
The call for Brighton and Hove to be included in the scheme was sparked by Brighton Pavilion’s Green MP, Caroline Lucas. She expressed disappointment but praised the “huge level of support” shown for the campaign.
She said: “I particularly welcome the Culture Secretary’s commitment to work with the city to enable us to meet our ambition to be an even more significant technology and culture hub."
Alex Morrison, chairman of Wired Sussex and managing director of digital firm Cogapp, said: "The fight is far from over and we will keep pushing to meet him and do all we can to push Brighton and Hove forward as a digital media hub.”
Hove’s Conservative MP Mike Weatherley said: “I hope to meet Jeremy shortly to discuss our bid proposal in detail, and any alternative proposals that he may have.”
Comments(6)
bug eye
says...
12:46pm Thu 19 Jan 12
Archie Bun
says...
12:52pm Thu 19 Jan 12
Justin
says...
1:06pm Thu 19 Jan 12
Pork William
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2:23pm Thu 19 Jan 12
Busterblister
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5:04pm Thu 19 Jan 12
Crystal Ball wrote:There is a massive difference between consumer and business broadband, and therefore the cost even at today's speeds.
Would someone like to clarify whether this means a publically available (and free) Broadband service within the centre of the town or the basic infrastructure to allow residents to have it piped to their homes?
Surely many residents already have a decent level of Broadband and pay for that privately?
Also, businesses in mutlti-tenancy premises need to do their homework.
Visit www.samknows,com for info about your local services.
Crystal Ball says...
12:45pm Thu 19 Jan 12
Surely many residents already have a decent level of Broadband and pay for that privately?