The UK Government is giving Scotland an extra £32 million for its superfast broadband rollout plans. This is on top of the £68.8 million given to Scotland out of the Broadband Delivery UK (BDUK) fund, topping up the Scottish BDUK fund to £100.8 million.
Following announcement of the Government’s £50 million Urban Broadband Fund, it emerged that Glasgow, Inverness and Stirling were ineligble to apply. This would see tens of thousands of Scottish residents and businesses missing out on public cash for next-gen broadband.
The extra cash could also be earmarked for piping superfast broadband to remote areas in the Scottish Highland and Islands.
Scottish Secretary Michael Moore said in a statement: “Access to superfast broadband means Scottish businesses can expand, develop new markets and compete globally. It also allows local communities to access public services more quickly and efficiently online.
Scottish broadband: £100.8 million for next-gen investment
“Providing Scotland with high-speed broadband is essential for businesses to grow and to create the new jobs we need. That is why the UK government believes broadband is essential not only for everyday life, but also for the future economic success of Scotland and the UK.”
Edinburgh was among the 10 of the UK’s cities earmarked for money from the £100 million ‘super connected cities’ pot. Aberdeen, Dundee and Perth were the only Scottish cities eligible to apply for money from the £50 million UBF pile.
Inverness and Stirling were excluded on the basis that they have less than 45,000 homes and businesses and Glasgow had been unsuccessful in earlier rounds of bidding making it ineligible to apply again.
Image credit: Flickr user Rev Stan
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