UK government failing on broadband targets

UK broadband was ranked 19th out of the 30 countries surveyed

The UK government is failing in its target to make British broadband the best in the world, according to a new report from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

The Communications Outlook 2007 report (PDF) found that British consumers pay an average of £14.50 a month for broadband.

The figure is around £8 in the US, £8.20 in France and £5.40 in Sweden. British broadband was ranked 19th out of the 30 countries surveyed. 

The UK government announced in 2005 its aim for the UK to top the list of broadband enabled countries, but the report reveals that the nation is slipping down the rankings. 

As well as being expensive, UK broadband speeds are dismal. The report, based on 2006 prices, found that Britons pay £1.81 per megabit per second, compared to the equivalent of 11p in Japan.

UK users also have little choice on pricing, since the range of supplier offerings is the narrowest of any country surveyed.

The speed issue is down to the poor state of British infrastructure. Countries like Japan, Sweden and Korea have made huge investments in fibre networks, which can offer speeds of up to 40Gbps. 

By contrast, most UK broadband is channelled over the copper network used for telephones and is limited to 26Mbps at best.

Overall UK consumers are still paying less year on year for communications services, and costs for voice calls are falling sharply, the report found.