Project Gigabit hits new milestone

A record £714 million has been invested by the government into the broadband rollout so far this year.

New data published today (10 April) reveals that since the start of 2024, nearly 380,000 rural premises are in line to access a better broadband connection.

The upgrades will give rural communities access to the fastest internet on the market, which the government said is helping to grow the economy.

Households will be able to download high-definition films in under one minute, stream and download entertainment and shop online across several devices at once.

Full fibre broadband will also make it easier for rural residents to set up businesses and increase local productivity.

Areas set to benefit include Yorkshire, the Isles of Scilly and Dorset, with the funding forming part of the UK Government’s flagship £5 billion Project Gigabit programme.

The funding brings the total invested so far to £1.3 billion. Nearly 82 per cent of properties across the country can now access lightning-fast broadband, up from 7 per cent this time five years ago.

Properties connected through Project Gigabit are in hard-to-reach rural locations, where residents and businesses previously would have struggled to perform basic online tasks because of poor and patchy connection.

Minister for data and digital Julia Lopez said connectivity is increasingly "the enabler for so many services that we rely on every day, from using maps to doing business."

"The figures published today demonstrate just how rapidly we are getting higher quality, gigabit broadband to every part of the country - even some of our most remote, rural areas.

"Whether that be to a business on the coast of Cornwall or the hills of the Peak District, patchy and poor connection should never be a barrier to economic growth or somebody’s life chances."