More parts of Scotland to be included in national broadband upgrade

OPENREACH is bringing full-fibre broadband to 28 more places in Scotland.

There are already 1.2 million homes and businesses across Scotland that have access to the technology.

Openreach is the UK’s largest broadband network, supporting more than 700 service providers, such as BT, Sky, and TalkTalk.

Robert Thorburn, Openreach partnership director for Scotland, said: “Our rollout of full-fibre broadband is a huge infrastructure success story. As far as we know, no company is building faster or further in Europe. We won’t be stopping any time soon.

“We now plan to build even further across Scotland, to more city locations, towns and our most rural communities. Our engineers are working at a rapid pace despite the huge complexities of an engineering project on this scale, stretching from Shetland to Stranraer.” This comes after Openreach’s £15 billion investment to upgrade the UK’s broadband, with plans to bring full fibre to 25 million homes and businesses by the end of 2026, including those in more remote areas.

People living in Port Glasgow in Inverclyde, Possil in Glasgow, Wester Hailes in Edinburgh, Grantown on Spey in the Highlands, Scone in Perth and Kinross, Tobermory on the Isle of Mull and 22 other communities are next in line for full fibre.

Several new locations in Fife and South Lanarkshire will be upgraded, while more parts of Aberdeen and Dundee are also included.

To keep updated on plans and progress, Openreach has produced an online map and postcode checker.

This map includes updates of additional locations as they are added, the current and expected full-fibre coverage and the personalised connectivity available to individual homes and businesses.

The Centre for Economics and Business Research says the full-fibre transformation could give a £4.5 billion boost to the output of the Scottish economy in 2030 and help 25,000 people into employment by 2026.

Tom Arthur, Scottish Government Employment and Investment Minister, said: “Digital infrastructure is a key enabler to support economic growth right across Scotland. It’s why the Scottish Government is making record investment in broadband infrastructure this year, and we will continue to work alongside Openreach and other partners to continue improving and extending our digital network to benefit communities and businesses across the country.

“As a signatory of Scotland’s Full Fibre Charter, Openreach is committed to accelerating and prioritising rollout of the technology.

“This welcome programme of work will bring continued significant investment in our workforce and national infrastructure, enabling more homes and businesses – including in our island and rural communities – to access a full-fibre connection.”