BT executive denies Norfolk excluded from broadband investment

An executive from the communications giant BT has denied that Norfolk and Suffolk are areas that are being excluded from broadband investment.

Over the past couple of week communications giant BT has released a list of additional areas where local exchanges will be upgraded so that residents and businesses in the area will be able to get speeds of up to 40Mbps. However, following the release of the list business leaders and officials from Norfolk and Suffolk expressed anger over the fact that none of the exchanges mentioned were located in these areas. These officials claimed that the areas were being excluded from broadband investment, and as a result residents and businesses would suffer.

However, an executive from BT has denied that these two areas are being excluded from broadband investment, and has said that the company is committed to providing faster broadband in Norfolk and Suffolk as well as in other areas around the country. Peter McCarthy-Ward, East of England director for BT, said that he was prioritising on making a case for better broadband services in the region.

He stated: “No organisation has done more than BT to make ‘Broadband Britain’ a reality, and thanks to the company’s multi-million pound investment, more than 99 per cent of homes and businesses in the East of England and across the UK can access broadband through their telephone exchange.”

He added: “The UK has some of the keenest prices for broadband in the world and, as a result, some 61pc of homes now take broadband, a level of adoption well ahead of many other nations, including France, Italy and Spain. BT continues to modernise and improve its broadband services. There are two major investment programmes underway. We are increasing the broadband speed offered by many of our exchanges from up to 8 Mbps to up to 24Mbps.”

Source – Great Yarmouth Mercury