Government backs faster broadband
Published on : 18/09/2007
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Plans to increase the speed of UK broadband services are set to receive the backing of the minister for competitiveness, Stephen Timms, later today.
Mr Timms is to address the Broadband Stakeholder Group, which has previously criticised the government for allowing the UK to fall behind other countries when it comes to broadband speed.
According to the Financial Times, the minister will make it clear that while the government will not pay for the new networks, it is willing to do what it can do to persuade companies to offer faster speeds.
A leaked extract from the speech seen by the FT said: "We need timely deployment of technology. We can’t afford to lag behind others. We need the right conditions for the market to operate effectively."
Increasing the speed and reliability of UK broadband was also in the news last week, with IS Preview.co.uk reporting last week that Orange was preparing to close its Anytime dial-up internet service.
The France Telecom subsidiary was planning to upgrade its dial-up customers to a broadband connection.
