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What is Digital Britain worth to you?

Hailed by some as a way of guaranteeing 21st century bandwidth for every UK household, a new 50 pence tax on phone lines has been condemned by others as a cynical stealth tax.
 


The government has announced plans to subsidise the expansion of fibre broadband in the UK with a monthly tax of 50 pence on every fixed copper line.

This recommendation forms part of a raft of proposals contained in the Digital Britain White Paper, which highlights the importance of the digital economy to the nation’s economic future. However this government document concludes that, left to its own devices, the private sector would not deliver crucial infrastructure upgrades to all areas of the country.

Speaking at the launch of the Digital Britain Report, Communications Minister Lord Carter said the market would probably provide next-generation broadband to between 50 and 65 per cent of the population but the “final third” would require help from the public sector.
 

Help would come in the form of the 50 pence “copper tax” to be levied on every fixed line in the country, which would raise an estimated £150m and £175m. Carter stressed that this amounts to just £6 per typical household per year and that the benefits to the economy would be enormous.

The report confirms the government’s intention to assure universal broadband connectivity of at least 2Mbps – a speed which Carter pointed out was not the height of his ambitions but rather a “technological minimum wage”.

"The market would probably provide next-generation broadband to between 50 and 65 per cent of the population but the “final third” would require help from the public sector."

Lord Carter,
Communications Minister


Martha Lane Fox new “Digital Inclusion Champion”

In a press release, the Department for Culture Media and Sport (DCMS) also confirmed the appointment of Martha Lane Fox as its new Digital Inclusion Champion. The Internet entrepreneur and co-founder of lastminute.com will work to maximize the take-up of new broadband services ensuring the highest possible number of citizens can share in the benefits of Digital Britain.
 

The DCMS detailed the full list of measures being proposed to modernise the UK’s digital infrastructure as:
 

• Universal access to today’s broadband by 2012, creating equal access for all and a fairer
  digital future

• A fund for investment in the next generation of superfast broadband to ensure it is available to
  the whole country, not just some of it

• Digital Radio Upgrade by 2015

• Accelerating current and next generation mobile coverage and services

• Proposed new role for sectoral regulator Ofcom to carry out a full assessment of the UK’s
  communications infrastructure every two years

Click here to read full press release
 

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