Dame Caroline Spelman has welcomed news that 96.6% of premises in Solihull Borough now benefit from superfast broadband.
According to localised figures, Chelmsley Wood, Kingshurst and Fordbridge and Smith’s Wood have the fastest broadband speeds in the Meriden constituency, with over 99% properties in these wards receiving speeds of more than 30Mb/s.
This has been delivered as part of the Government’s manifesto commitment to extending superfast broadband to 95 per cent of UK premises by the end of 2017. Data released today confirms this ambitious target has been met. More than 19 out of every 20 UK homes and businesses now have the opportunity to upgrade their internet connections to superfast speeds of 24 Mbps or faster.
Commenting, Dame Caroline said: “Across the Borough, 96.6% of premises are benefiting from access to Superfast broadband. This is great news for families and businesses in Solihull Borough and I am particularly delighted that in some areas of my constituency, such as in Chelmsley Wood, 99.9% of homes and businesses have access to superfast broadband infrastructure.
“Despite this achievement, I am aware that there are still some areas in the more rural parts of my constituency (Meriden) that are due to have Superfast Broadband Infrastructure installed in the coming months and I will be working with the Coventry, Warwickshire and Solihull Superfast Broadband Scheme to ensure that these works go ahead at the earliest opportunity”.
Over the last five years, the Government’s roll-out of Superfast broadband has made Superfast speeds a reality for more than 4.5 million homes and businesses who would otherwise have missed out. As well as delivering everyday benefits to families, such as easy access to information and convenient ways of staying in touch, better broadband also equips businesses with the digital infrastructure they need to expand and compete in today’s digital age.