UK falling behind on broadband

The UK is falling behind the rest of the world when it comes to high-speed broadband, according to the government's new competitiveness minister.

Stephen Timms, Labour MP for London's East Ham, has expressed deep concern about the roll-out of services, and warned that the government may intervene.

"Other countries are starting to invest in new fibre-based infrastructure delivering considerably higher bandwidth than is available in the UK today," Timms said.

"I will chair a high-level summit later this year to consider the circumstances that might trigger public sector intervention and the form that intervention might take."

The Broadband Stakeholder Group (BSG), which the minister was addressing, issued similar warnings in April.

The government advisory group claimed that uncertainties surrounding next-generation broadband had to be resolved within two years if the UK is to maintain its competitive edge and fend off a widening digital divide.

"As minister for competitiveness, I see it as one of my highest priorities that we have a high-performance telecoms infrastructure in every part of the country, enabling us to compete successfully on a global basis," said Timms.

The BSG has called for the whole of the UK to be upgraded to a fibre-based network, which is estimated to cost between £10bn and £15bn.

However, Timms pointed to some success in the UK's current broadband services, pointing out that when he became e-commerce minister five years ago, the UK's broadband availability and use was as developed as that of Croatia's.

"Together, thanks in no small measure to the work of the BSG, we fixed that problem and put Britain in a leading position, " he said.