6. Will the First Minister provide an update on the Welsh Government’s programme for rolling out full fibre broadband? OQ57129

I thank Peter Fox for that, Llywydd. Responsibility for connectivity lies with the UK Government. Where there are gaps, we continue to step in. Over 27,000 premises have now secured access to full fibre across Wales under our £56 million full fibre roll-out programme, and that includes over 1,000 premises in Monmouthshire.

Thank you for that response, First Minister. Increasingly, more and more work and, indeed, other daily activities are shifting online, meaning having a fast broadband speed is absolutely crucial for families. And that is why the Welsh Government-funded full fibre broadband roll-out is to be welcomed. But recently, multiple constituents have contacted me to air their concerns over the Welsh Government removing the ability for them to type in their postcode on its website to ascertain whether their properties will be included and, indeed, when in the roll-out programme. The concerns surfaced when the postcode checker on the Welsh Government website was removed. I note people can use the Openreach checker, but this doesn't provide much information and doesn't distinguish, arguably, correctly from the perspective of the general public between being connected through the Welsh Government's funded roll-out programme and Openreach's commercial roll-out. Understandably, this transparency issue is causing huge concern and unnecessary worry. First Minister, will the Government address this shortcoming quickly to prevent any further stress to constituents and, no doubt, many others across Wales? And once this has been addressed, can you outline any plans to deliver a follow-up full fibre roll-out programme when the current one finishes? Thank you.

I thank Peter Fox for that, Llywydd. I'll make an enquiry into the postcode facility and what has happened to it, and I'll make sure that I write to the Member with a reply on that. 

It's an interesting question about what lies beyond the current round of Welsh Government funding. Our funding over recent years has largely been used to fill gaps in the provision that the UK Government was embarked upon, but it is fair to say that in the last 12 months the UK Government has announced a significant increase in its programme—its UK-funded 'Project Gigabit'. We've recently learned from the UK Government that they believe that there are 234,000 properties likely to be in scope now for its funding, and there are discussions going on at the moment to work through the question of whether it will be preferable for the UK Government now simply to press ahead with its own scheme—to run it, to deliver it, to operate it here in Wales—or whether it would be preferable to use the on-the-ground machinery that the Welsh Government has set up, and then use the UK Government funding to continue to provide in that way. Those conversations are going on at the moment, and I expect them to be concluded before the end of this calendar year. 

In order for the future of the port of Holyhead to flourish, good communications infrastructure based on fibre broadband will be needed in order to meet demand. I have been contacted by FibreSpeed, who already have installed a point of presence close to where the proposed customs and excise building is to be built. I've been told their technology could help frictionless transport of goods and unlock automation using 5G technology, but they are struggling to get their voices heard. UK Government is totally uninterested in making the most of this opportunity, and are not responding to their correspondence. First Minister, may I ask what discussions the Welsh Government has had with UK Government about development of a high tech and efficient customs infrastructure base at the port of Holyhead to help with the frictionless transport? Diolch.

I thank Carolyn Thomas for that, Llywydd, and I thank her for writing to the Welsh Government, to my colleague Vaughan Gething, on behalf of the company, and as a result of her letter I know that the economy Minister's officials met with FibreSpeed last week, and part of what they will be doing now will be to make sure that relations between them and UK Government action on the ground at Holyhead is improved, and that the company are able to make their case. The general point that the Member makes, of course, is a very important one; Holyhead remains a pivotal port for the United Kingdom. The impact of Brexit on it and the Northern Ireland protocol is very real. The need for new infrastructure at the port to deal with the new obligations that we will now have to discharge as a result of leaving the European Union are very important to the port. We aim to work collaboratively with the UK Government on that matter. But it was, Llywydd, deeply concerning to see in the comprehensive spending review that the Chancellor declined directly to offer a commitment to fund that infrastructure once the capital investment has been concluded. The running costs of those facilities, which have never been provided to the Welsh Government and are not a consequence of our own decision making, will be considerable, and it is a genuine obligation on the UK Government to make sure that that activity goes on being funded.