Digital Poverty

Part of 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 2:26 pm on 17 January 2023.

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Photo of Sarah Murphy Sarah Murphy Labour 2:26, 17 January 2023

Thank you, First Minister. Digital poverty is an issue that I deeply care about. I think the true implications were very much brought into the mainstream during the pandemic, when we relied on all things digital to connect with one another during lockdowns, or used digital appliances to work from home or school. That said, we continue to see its impact now during the cost-of-living crisis, because so much of the support and resources that people need to access are online, and people are being excluded due to the costs because we know that as budgets become tight, broadband is likely to be the thing that gets turned off in homes. At one point, there was this assumption that broadband and digital tech was a luxury, but the reality is that it's a necessity, and for some people they are missing out due to a lack of means.

I know that tackling digital exclusion is a priority for this Government, and I'm pleased to see within the digital strategy for Wales that the Welsh Government is working collaboratively with the Digital Poverty Alliance to end digital poverty by 2030, and in partnership with the Good Things Foundation on the national databank initiative that provides free mobile data, texts and calls to people in need.

I've also been liaising with the Bridgend Association of Voluntary Organisations, and a Welsh broadband company, Ogi, who are delivering high-speed broadband across Porthcawl—[Interruption.]—and Caerphilly to see if there is any scope to provide WiFi at warm banks across Bridgend. So, will the First Minister provide an update on the roll-out of the warm hubs across Bridgend? What assessment has been done to see if we can incorporate having high-speed broadband access into those hubs to create that legacy of access for our communities?