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Digital infrastructure
08/02/2012
An additional £68 million for digital connectivity was announed in today's Budget.
Finance Secretary John Swinney said the investment was needed to support improvements in internet speeds, supporting economic growth. With £40 million of the funding being spent by Local Government, the remaining £28 million will be allocated by central Government.
Altogether, more than £250 million of public funding has now been identified to support faster internet access across the whole of Scotland – including remote and rural areas.
Welcoming the funding, which is additional capital resources for 2012-2015, Alex Neil, Cabinet Secretary for Infrastructure and Capital Investment, said:
"High quality digital access and faster internet speeds are a necessity for Scotland and our economy. All of Scotland’s citizens should have access to and the ability to participate in the digital revolution that has the potential to transform lives, bring communities together and substantially boost our economy.
"Getting the right infrastructure in place is part of the solution and one which will bring public and private enterprise together to deliver faster internet access for the people in Scotland, wherever they live.
"Last month I published Scotland’s Digital Future: Infrastructure Action Plan, setting out our aims. Today’s significant extra money will help make those ambitious targets a reality, bringing public funding in Scotland to more than a quarter of a billion pounds.
"We recognise the excellent and often significant amount of work that many Local Authorities have already undertaken in developing local broadband plans.
"The Highlands and Islands broadband project, which is currently in procurement, is expected to begin delivering connectivity improvements to the region from January 2013, following contract award this summer.
"For the rest of Scotland, by the end of March 2012, we will produce a procurement strategy to deliver the 2015 targets. Our intention is to commence the procurement itself by summer 2012 and award a contract in the first half of 2013, with delivery of connectivity improvements expected shortly thereafter.
"To build on this work, we believe it is critical that a partnership approach with Local Authorities is pursued. This will ensure the right balance between the national objectives and the local needs is struck and delivered as well as proving value for money from the public purse."
Polly Purvis, Executive Director of ScotlandIS commented:
"This is very welcome news as the investment required to deliver next generation broadband is considerable. We have been impressed by the Government's determination to ensure Scotland benefits from internationally competitive broadband connectivity, setting a challenging timetable for delivery."
Scotland’s ambition is for everyone by 2015 to benefit from a significant improvement, with speeds of 40 – 80Mbps for between 85 per cent to 90 per cent of premises. It will enhance business communication, allowing workers to collaborate in real-time from different geographical locations on secure workspaces in the cloud; and extend customer relationships through high-resolution video calls, increased online trading and more advanced digital marketing.
The funding, which comes from Barnett Consequentials, will mean central government funding for digital infrastructure has increased by £28 million and provides an additional £40 million to Local Government for broadband services over the next three years.
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