Julie James: Reiterating my answers to Russell George then, we have a £1.15 million local broadband campaign and a £12.5 million superfast business project, which are marketing the scheme for take-up and to businesses. We work closely with Business Wales as well to make small businesses in particular aware of what superfast can actually do for their business. So, it’s not just about the take-up for...
Julie James: Thank you for those questions. Russell George didn’t mention the fact that in committee last Thursday morning, he pressed me as to when my next statement would be, and I promised him it would be before Christmas. So, I was rather hoping you’d give me credit for having got there really quite rapidly, only two days later. In terms of the take-up, we have independent research to show us what...
Julie James: Diolch, Lywydd. Following my written statement yesterday I want today to just restate those plans for further investment superfast broadband following the completion of Superfast Cymru next year. We’ve been very clear about our ambitions in ‘Taking Wales Forward’ to bring fast, reliable broadband to every property in Wales. Our achievements to date should not be underestimated....
Julie James: Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. Can I begin by thanking the Welsh Conservatives for bringing forward this motion today? I also thank Members for their contributions to the debate. I thank them because it’s very clear that there is a critical importance around digital infrastructure for the people, communities and the economy of Wales. As has been made very clear in the contributions...
Julie James: It’s 30 Mbps here too.
Julie James: Formally.
Julie James: Well, I’m not in a position to give you chapter and verse of the strategy for BA at the site; I think it’s a matter for them to do that, as a corporate entity. And that’s what I said, when I said the Cabinet Secretary for Economy and Infrastructure would keep the Assembly informed—as it’s right and proper for the Assembly to know what the plan is, and as it’s announced to the...
Julie James: Well, thank you very much for those questions, which are all very important indeed, and I’ll try my best to answer them fully. In terms of when, the Government has, via its officials and on a political level, been in touch with BA throughout this year. Senior-level meetings were held earlier this year in London. A range of officials are engaged with BA at all times as part of the Welsh...
Julie James: Today’s news of redundancies at British Airways’ maintenance facility is unfortunate. BA is seeking voluntary redundancies where possible. The Welsh Government is working closely with BA. Job Centre Plus and Careers Wales will be asked to support all staff affected, and the Cabinet Secretary for the Economy and Infrastructure will keep the Assembly updated as we know more.
Julie James: Thank you. On that last point, as I’ve said repeatedly, BT needs to get to as many premises as possible as fast as possible to get through its contractual requirements, and I know that it’s taken a review of the cabinets that it previously put forward to see if it can increase the capacity on it. And if you want to write to me again about cabinet 16, which is the one I assume you’re...
Julie James: Okay, Llywydd, I’ll refrain from explaining it again, but I have explained it several times already. So, I don’t accept what he says. The final thing he said, though, I do accept very much: it has gone from a luxury to an essential, and that is why this Government is promising to get it to everybody. What I said about fibre broadband was that not everybody would be cabled. I said...
Julie James: Can I say to Darren Millar how very much I’ve missed his righteous indignation; it’s been absent from the Chamber for a little while now, so it’s nice to see it back in full flood. Sadly, it is a little over-zealous in this instance, because I think he failed, really, to listen very carefully to my previous answers to Members. So, I’ll just reiterate them. We haven’t moved the...
Julie James: Indeed, and the Member is indeed a prolific correspondent on the subject, as are many Members in the Chamber. But, yes, I think it is important to recognise the cultural change that’s happened during the course of this programme. In 2013, when we started this programme, amongst the most common comments from people were, ‘Ah, you’ll never get it to us, and we don’t want it anyway....
Julie James: I thank the Member for those important questions. We had a long meeting very recently to discuss some of these issues. I think it’s important not to conflate two separate issues. One is the ‘promise’, if you like, that BT used to have on their website that you might be in scope in the next three months. People were rightly very cheesed off when the three months went past and they...
Julie James: So, on your first point, of course it’s not just rural, it’s just that most areas where there’s no commercial roll-out are rural. But you correctly identified a place in your own constituency that didn’t have commercial, although, weirdly, there’s a triangle in the middle of Swansea that didn’t have it either. But it’s just a sort of generality that, for the most part, it’s...
Julie James: Okay, well, thank you for that, and thank you very much for your kind remarks. We’re very proud of the fact that we've got Wales to be one of the leaders in digital connectivity right across Europe, and it's a matter of some concern to us that we get people to take up the benefits of it now that we've spent the money in rolling it out. In terms of business take-up, one of the reasons that...
Julie James: Thank you for that series of questions and comments, Russell George. A day is not complete in my ministerial office without a letter from you on Superfast Cymru; so, I very much appreciate your interest on behalf of your constituents in this matter. I’ll try and get through all of them. The contractual obligations point: we’re not relying on clawback as a result of failure of BT to get...
Julie James: Thank you very much for those points. In terms of the roll-out and the rurality issue, the point about this programme is it is almost entirely based in rural areas, or non-metropolitan areas, because it’s a market intervention. So, the point about it is, we’re only allowed to go where the market isn’t going to go. So, it’s a truism, I’m afraid, that the market only goes to...
Julie James: Diolch, Lywydd. Today, I want to provide you with an update on the progress of Superfast Cymru, together with our emerging work to address the final few per cent of premises not part of the project or commercial roll-outs and a refreshed approach to communications and marketing. I’m sure that I do not need to impress on Members the growing importance of connectivity to homes and businesses....
Julie James: Superfast Cymru has provided access to superfast fibre broadband to 143,316 premises across north east Wales.
