More than one million faster broadband connections have been
delivered to homes and businesses across Scotland, backed by £1
billion of publicly-driven investment.
The £463 million Digital Scotland Superfast Broadband (DSSB)
programme launched in 2014 and connected more than 950,600
premises to fibre-based broadband – over 150,000 more than
originally anticipated. The build was completed in 2020, with
independent analysis showing that the programme is delivering £12
of benefits to the economy for every £1 of public funding.
The £600 million Reaching 100% (R100) programme, one of the most
ambitious and complex digital infrastructure programmes in Europe
is now rolling out connections in some of the country's most
challenging rural locations.
Originally conceived as a superfast broadband programme, R100 is
now providing a gigabit-capable connection – a speed more than 30
times faster than superfast broadband - in around 99% of cases.
Building to some of the hardest-to-reach parts of Scotland,
48,000 connections have so far been delivered through the R100
contracts, with a further 3,800 connections provided through the
R100 Scottish Broadband Voucher Scheme.
To mark the delivery milestone, Wellbeing Economy Secretary Mairi
McAllan visited Highland Fling Bungee in Perthshire, a small
business that has benefitted from the R100 contracts.
She said:
“Fast and reliable broadband has never been so important: it is
an increasingly vital tool for everything from work and leisure,
healthcare and education. As illustrated by Highland Fling
Bungee, it is also unlocking new ways for businesses to innovate
and thrive.
“This is precisely why the Scottish Government has prioritised
investment in digital connectivity in the 2024-25 Budget. Indeed,
despite telecoms being reserved, we have now committed to
investing more than £650 million across the DSSB and R100
programmes, recognising that faster broadband is a key building
block for a green and growing economy.
“Enabling more than one million connections to faster broadband
is a landmark achievement in delivering this vision, and we are
fully committed to ensuring as many people as possible can
benefit from the advantages of future-proofed digital
infrastructure to run businesses and services across the country.
Laurie Thomas, Operations Manager at Highland Fling Bungee in
Killiecrankie said:
“Full Fibre broadband connection has benefited all aspects of our
business. It has had huge positive impacts for our marketing and
operations so that now we can livestream jumps and send edited
videos of customer jumps in around a day, as well as helping our
social media. This has made a significant difference to how we
can engage and respond to customers, which has been game-changing
for our business.”
Chief Engineer for lead delivery partner Openreach Scotland
Fraser Rowberry said:
"Scotland's digital journey is a story of resilience and
progress. From adapting to remote work and learning during the
pandemic to expanding ultrafast internet access, we've come a
long way. Today's milestone marks a massive engineering success,
connecting people and businesses from Shetland to Stranraer, and
we're proud of the part we've played through our work with the
Scottish Government.
"Change on this scale, reaching even the most rural areas, is a
testament to teamwork and determination. Let's celebrate our
achievements as we keep reaching for better connectivity across
Scotland."
UK Digital Infrastructure Minister Julia Lopez said:
“It's fantastic to see that so many will benefit from the one
million connections we've worked with the Scottish
Government to fund and deliver. All these communities, who were
previously stuck with snail's pace internet, now have the speeds
available to stream, work and play.
“In addition to the rollout of Superfast connections, we now want
to ensure Scottish communities have the connectivity they need
for the decades to come. This is why we are planning further
investment in contracts to bring much faster full fibre broadband
to hard-to-reach premises right across Scotland - futureproofing
rural communities by empowering homes and businesses to seize the
benefits of digital technology."
Background
Funding partners in the R100 programme
Scottish Government over £590m
BT over £53m
UK Government over £52m
Funding partners in the DSSB programme
Scottish Government over £62m
UK Government over £100m
Scottish Local Authorities over £90m
BT over £126m
ERDF £12m
HIE over £11m
More than £600 million is being invested in the R100 programme
through three strands of activity – the R100 contracts, the R100
Scottish Broadband Voucher Scheme (R100 SBVS) and ongoing
commercial coverage.
The R100 contracts are expected to deliver around 114,000
connections throughout Scotland.
The R100 Scottish Broadband Voucher Scheme is available to
premises which are beyond the reach of commercial and R100
contract build and offers up to £5,000 with which to secure a
superfast broadband connection.
