UK broadband Future Plans could suffer from a Hung Parliament
Could the next year’s general election in the United Kingdom have a mighty impact on the much expected rollout of the next generation superfast fibre optic broadband in the country? Particularly, if the party ascending the power ladder is the Conservative party. The answer would be an intimidating ‘yes’ if the warning issued by the Broadband Stakeholders’ Group (BSG) can be taken into consideration.
Against the backdrop of a well and widely known fact that the views on the future broadband rollout in the United Kingdom maintained by the major rival parties – the Labour and the Conservative parties – are considerably different, BSG has posted its intriguing survey result. This says that owing to the uncertainties shrouding the post-election scenario of the broadband segment of the United Kingdom, a tint of reluctance could be formed amongst the private investors to fund the initiative smoothly, which would result in a swift rollout.
Both the parties that would be locking horns as the chief contenders in the election have already made clear their respective stances in the context of the country’s future broadband rollout plans. As a matter of fact, the Labour government had already treaded a good distance on their pet universal broadband programme that points to the provision of a broadband connection of 2Mbps minimum download speed to every household in the United Kingdom by 2012, besides their bigger plan of rolling out a next generation superfast fibre optic broadband network across the country that would be done stage by stage to be completed within a decades time.
On the other hand, the Conservatives that had aired their views through Ed Vaizey, their spokesman on the broadband issues, had also expressed their difference with the 2Mbps universal broadband rollout plans proposed by the Labour government. Instead the Tory broadband plans give priority to the next generation fibre optic broadband rollout that would spread from the cities. This stance of the Conservatives has resulted in causing widespread apprehension among the residents of the rural areas in the UK including broadband users.
Moreover, the view of the Conservatives to virtually emasculate the prominent as well as incumbent fixed-line broadband provider of the United Kingdom BT, particularly in the context of their involvement in the future broadband rollout of the United Kingdom, has obviously taken the people living in the rural areas by surprise, apart from a bit of apprehension. They have their doubts about the Tory line of planning for a next generation broadband funding participating all the players in the country instead of helping it with a public funding. They doubt if the private entities would sincerely apply into a robust rural broadband enhancement.
It is amusing that the Broadband Stakeholder Group’s chief executive, Anthony Walker had stressed the two different views held by the rival political parties, during a Westminster forum that they were facing a couple of entirely contrasting broadband roadmaps. He added that the industrial activism approach of the Labour that he rather liked to call nuts and bolts, and the heart of which is was the knowledge that a problem coming up, as the approach of the Tories was quiet different in its structure of looking at the market mechanism in the anticipation for a new market entry and to boost the market value hoping that the market not only exceeded the commoner’s expectations of the day but also delivered more.
However, the most significant warning sounded by Walker was that a hung parliament resulting from the upcoming general elections could potentially put the broadband rollout across the country in total jeopardy.
