An extra two thousand premises in South Shropshire will benefit from gigabit broadband, thanks to a campaign led by Stuart Anderson MP. Openreach has signed a contract to connect 4,000 premises in Mid-West Shropshire. Half of these premises will be in South Shropshire.
It is the second contract this year that Openreach has signed to benefit the area. In January, a contract was awarded for premises in East and South Shropshire, North Herefordshire, North Wales, and South West Wales.
January's contract, which is worth £108 million, will benefit 48,000 homes and businesses. The latest development follows the termination of a contract with Voneus in December 2024.
At the time, Telecoms Minister Sir Chris Bryant MP said that none of the infrastructure had been built and Voneus had not received public funding. In correspondence with Stuart, the Minister added that he was "moving swiftly" to put in place alternative solutions for the premises.
Since then, Stuart has been campaigning to enhance digital connectivity across the constituency. Stuart's campaign is part of his plan to unlock rural prosperity across South Shropshire.
While Stuart welcomed the new contract, he has said it must be delivered at pace to achieve the greatest possible impact. In August, Stuart met with Openreach in Parliament to discuss the need for greater local investment.
He also slammed the government's decision to delay the target for full national rollout from 2030 to 2032. In South Shropshire, gigabit broadband availability stands well below the national average at 42%. This represents 21,422 premises in the constituency.
Subsequently, Shropshire has been placed in the bottom five of English constituencies and fifteenth least connected in the UK. The government's manifesto had committed to achieving nation-wide coverage by 2030.
However, the Chancellor's Spending Review has delayed the full rollout until 2032. The Conservatives had also pledged to achieve at least 85% coverage by 2025 and nationwide by 2030.
The roll-out is being led by Building Digital UK, which has told Stuart that the local programme will be delivered by 2030. The contract is part of Project Gigabit, which was launched in 2021 to ensure that rural areas which are not included in commercial sector plans are not left behind.
Under the Conservatives, the Budget in 2020 committed £5 billion for the hardest to reach parts of the country. This helped the UK reach 81 per cent gigabit-capable premises coverage in 2024. While this has risen from just 5.8 per cent in 2019, Stuart has said the rollout should be accelated, and not delayed.
Stuart Anderson MP said:
“Local homes and businesses rightly demand greater broadband coverage and faster speeds. I know just how important this is for residents, which is why I launched my campaign to enhance digital connectivity after the contract for Mid-Shropshire was cancelled last year. I am pleased that Openreach has now been awarded this contract, which will see gigabit broadband rolled out to a further two thousand premises in South Shropshire To achieve the greatest possible impact, this new contract must be delivered at pace. The government should also rethink its decision to delay full national rollout by two years to 2032. Despite the government’s delay, I will continue to work with broadband operators to boost the rollout in South Shropshire and address areas that still need support to get connected."
