The government is being urged to do more to help Devon households stuck with ‘almost prehistoric’ broadband speeds.

A Commons debate heard that large areas of the rural South Hams were still struggling after being let down by a broadband provider.

South Devon Liberal Democrat MP Caroline Voaden told fellow MPs: “The company that was tasked with rolling out full-fibre broadband was astonishingly allowed to walk away from its contract after building the easy urban bits, leaving all the hard-to-reach areas behind.”

She called on the Leader of the House to agree to a debate on how the government can underwrite high-speed broadband rollout in areas where it isn’t commercially viable.

Homes and businesses across South Devon have been left struggling with slow internet connections, and a recent South Hams Council meeting heard how the area’s economy could be held back as a result.

“Broadband is as important to the rural economy as electricity,” said Mrs Voaden. Leader of the House Lucy Powell, who is a Manchester Labour MP, said Mrs Voaden is right.“To rural communities—indeed, to any community—broadband really is the fourth utility,” she said. “It is vital to her constituents and many others in their daily lives, for doing what they need to do. We have inherited a pretty poor record when it comes to rollout, but we are trying to speed it up through Project Gigabit and the shared rural network.”

Project Gigabit will be crucial to achieving the government’s target of full gigabit coverage by 2030. It targets homes and businesses that are not included in broadband suppliers’ plans, reaching parts of the UK that might otherwise miss out on getting the digital connectivity they need. 

The connections delivered by Project Gigabit will benefit rural and remote communities, as well as tackling pockets of poor connectivity in urban areas.