Bexhill and Battle MP, Greg Barker, hosted a successful Business Broadband Roundtable at the De La Warr Pavilion last Friday for local businesses and organisations to help them get a better understanding of the ambitious Local Broadband Plan for East Sussex.
Cllr Peter Jones, Leader of East Sussex County Council led the roundtable, supported by Callum Knowles of Regional Network Solutions who is working with East Sussex County Council to identify broadband solutions for all areas of East Sussex and who was able to answer specific technical questions.
Welcoming everyone to the meeting, Greg pledged that the Coalition Government would bring superfast broadband to all parts of the UK and was committed to creating the best broadband network in Europe by 2015. He told the meeting that superfast broadband will provide the foundations from which the UK economy will grow and recover from the recession by making it easier for businesses to communicate with their suppliers and customers both locally and globally. It will also offer better and more efficient channels for delivering public services, making them more accessible to all and especially rural communities.
Cllr Jones explained that currently only 3 per cent of homes and businesses in East Sussex have access to superfast broadband and there are over 64,000 properties which are not able to get what the Government states is the acceptable minimum broadband speed of 2mbps (megabits per second).
The County Council and its partners are committed to securing a superfast broadband future; over £15 million has been ear-marked from County Council funds, more than matching the £10.64 million already set aside by the Government for the County. The Council aims to cover 100 per cent of East Sussex as quickly as possible.
Answering concerns from local business owners in Burwash and Sedlescombe, Cllr Jones said that the Council will be specifically targeting and prioritising the more rural areas of the County which currently receive no or poor broadband coverage.
Cllr Jones explained how important it is for businesses and residents to engage, not only with the County Council, but also their local Parish and Town Councils to help build a strong case for broadband for their local area. The project will be very much community-led and the County Council will shortly be launching a website that anyone can use to register their interest in broadband.
The roundtable was attended by local representatives from the Federation of Small Businesses and the Lets Do Business group who confirmed their members’ support of the Council’s Local Broadband Plan. They agreed with Greg and Peter Jones that superfast broadband is vital for the growth and success of small and medium-sized businesses in East Sussex.
Speaking after the meeting Greg said “Superfast broadband is essential for the future plans of our area. I want Bexhill and Battle to be at the very forefront of the broadband revolution, opening up new opportunities for businesses and families alike, helping to drive a new model of sustainable economic growth here in East Sussex.
The ambitious plans of East Sussex County Council outlined by Councillor Peter Jones at our meeting are very exciting and put our area right at the forefront of IT developments.”
Following the success of this roundtable, Greg plans to hold a further meeting in the north of the constituency to reach more local businesses and organisations. If anyone is interested in attending they should contact Frances McKenna, Constituency Manager on 01424 734910 or [email protected] .