APPENDIX 11
Memorandum submitted by Anne and Peter
Robinson (S21)
1. We welcome the opportunity to contribute
to the EFRAC session No 17 on broadband in rural areas. The Rural
White Paper, DETR, 2000, 7.5, highlighted the role of Information
and Communications Technology (ICT) in widening the economic base
in rural areas and reducing the need to travel, but recognised
that such opportunities are limited by poorer communications infrastructure,
particularly the absence of broadband.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
2. In summary our answers to the questions
that the Committee will consider are as follows:
(i) Our community would benefit from the
provision of broadband services as the majority of the sparse
population works or runs a business from home.
(ii) No provision of broadband services exists
nor is any planned. In our area the condition of the telephone
infrastructure and its distance from the exchange preclude the
delivery of broadband services through it.
(iii) The obstacles to broadband provision
appear to be:
— Poor quality telephone infrastructure.
— Distance of line from the telephone
exchange.
— Resistance of BT to providing
rural areas with new telephone infrastructure.
— Unacceptable adverse impacts
from providing new ground base station equipment in areas important
for their natural beauty.
— Inadequate development of alternative
technologies.
(iv) DEFRA should promote provision of broadband
services to all rural areas but in the context of the need to
protect and enhance the countryside and in particular landscapes
of great natural beauty. The Countryside Agency should promote
pilot studies of alternative technologies. The Regional Development
Agencies (RDA) should ensure that ICT support is available to
meet the needs of rural areas for business support, and social
and physical regeneration.
(v) Alternatives through which broadband
services could be delivered are being investigated but these are
not sufficiently advanced to meet the needs of rural communities.
OUR DETAILED
RESPONSE
3. We answer questions (i) (ii) (iii) and
(v) with reference to our own peculiar circumstances, and then
answer question (iv).
4. We live in a remote rural area with a
telephone line that is twelve miles distant from the exchange.
The first five miles of the line is fibreoptic cable, but the
remaining seven miles is copper cable. Engineers inform us that
this section is not protected by adequate insulation and therefore
susceptible to faults and interference. Our line is partly underground
and partly overground, passes the main electricity supply and
crosses a major geological fault line. We have always had a low
grade hum ("the Bamford hum") on the line and for the
last two years we have suffered continuous interference of variable
intensity, in addition to the hum, and had major interruptions
to our supply. The crackling interference is sufficiently severe
that some voice calls are terminated, and internet and email connections
are extremely difficult to maintain.
5. BT regards the interference as of little
consequence. Engineers periodically address it with little result.
A customer has to have a complete interruption of a line to get
more immediate treatment. In the most recent case of interruption
it took BT four weeks to find the fault and reconnect our supply
during which time we had no phone connection and had to drive
three miles to the nearest phone box. BT effectively has a monopoly
on the telephone landline to our property and its attitude is
to repair faults and not do any protective maintenance or upgrade.
We pointed out several years ago that the telephone cable that
runs under the track to the house and is used by tractors was
exposed and badly worn, through the outer insulation. At that
time only a few inches were exposed; now it is a few feet. We
have repeatedly requested a new fibre optic cable to replace the
copper cable but have been advised that it will never happen due
to costs.
6. Eighteen dwellings are connected to the
same telephone system at the same or greater distance from the
exchange. The majority of residents run businesses or work from
these dwellings, and cover diverse activities including farming,
gamekeeping, furniture making, running a public house and managing
two residential centres for visitors.
7. We hope that you are convinced of the
poor condition of the telephone infrastructure and the service
that it provides to our remote rural community, and of our need
for broadband. We have been advised that broadband services cannot
be delivered via the telephone line because of the poor quality
of the infrastructure and the distance of our line from the exchange.
8. What are the alternatives? We have investigated
these and they fall into two categories, land based communications
or satellite.
9. Any land based ICT, such as mobile phones
or wireless Point-to-Multi Point, requires supporting infrastructure
in terms of base stations or masts. In many remote areas, erecting
such infrastructure would be to the detriment of the beauty of
the countryside. We live in a valley and would require a substantial
number of base stations to provide a network. Such development
would create clutter. That valley also happens to be at the heart
of a National Park where the statutory purposes are to:
(i) conserve and enhance the natural beauty,
wildlife and cultural heritage of the National Parks; and
(ii) promote opportunities for the understanding
and enjoyment of the special qualities [of the Parks] by the public
(Environment Act 1995, s 61).
10. We fully support the Peak District National
Park Authority in resisting telecommunications' equipment in the
area as it would be to the detriment of its natural beauty and
thereby destroy the asset on which its economy depends. Such arguments
would also apply to many other remote areas. At present the operators
of mobile phones are doing little to promote new design or disguise
of telecommunications' equipment in rural areas and offer the
standard lattice towers or poles. They are resistant to burying
equipment underground or using trees.
11. We understand that satellite connection,
both one and two way, is under investigation. One-Way Satellite
access would offer high speed download capability but only offers
a one way service; this is of no use when sending emails.
12. It can therefore be concluded that the
obstacles to the provision of broadband in rural areas are:
— Poor quality telephone infrastructure.
— Distance of line from the telephone
exchange.
— Resistance of BT to providing rural
areas with new telephone infrastructure.
— Unacceptable adverse impacts from
providing new base station equipment in areas important for their
natural beauty.
— Inadequate development of alternative
technologies.
13. Some way must be found to connect remote
rural areas to broadband services. Either ground base stations
must be so well camouflaged and concealed as to provide no adverse
impacts on the natural beauty of the countryside or two way satellite
connections must be provided.
14. In this context DEFRA, the Countryside
Agency, and the RDAs need to work closely together.
15. DEFRA's key role is to ensure that the
countryside generally and National Parks and Areas of Outstanding
Natural Beauty in particular are safeguarded for their own sake
(PPG 7, paragraphs 2.14 and 4.2). National Park Authorities are
required by law to deliver the National Park purposes outlined
in paragraph nine above, and these take precedence over their
statutory duty to seek to foster the economic and social well-being
of their local communities. Statutory undertakers and relevant
authorities also have a general duty to have regard to the purposes
of National Parks when coming to decisions or carrying out their
activities relating to or affecting land within the Parks (Environment
Act 1995 s 62).
16. It is clear from our dealings with other
Government Departments—the DTI and the Home Office—over
the rollout of the Airwave emergency services' telecommunications'
system that they did not consider National Park purposes as relevant
to their decision making. Furthermore, although PPG 8 emphasises
the importance of protecting the countryside and areas important
for their natural beauty, wildlife and cultural heritage, it does
not permit planning authorities to question the need for telecommunications'
systems. This can lead to decisions that compromise the valued
characteristics of these areas.
17. Consideration of the application of
broadband services to rural areas provides DEFRA with an opportunity
to raise the importance of protecting and enhancing the countryside
generally and designated areas in particular, amongst all other
central Government departments, to ensure that the Section 62
duty is observed by relevant bodies, to call for high standards
of development that respect the countryside's valued characteristics,
and to monitor carefully any changes to the licenses of telecommunications
operators that would be to the detriment of the countryside. Some
of these responsibilities were identified by the recent Review
of English National Park Authorities (2002).
18. The Countryside Agency's role is to
lead with research and advice, influence others, especially central
and local Government, and demonstrate ways forward through practical
projects. In this situation the Agency should be fulfilling all
three roles and in particular, with the telecommunications industry,
should be promoting the development of alternative designs for
ground base stations, and alternative technologies that would
reduce or eliminate the need for ground base stations, such as
network roaming and satellite.
19. The RDA's statutory purposes are to
further economic development, and social and physical regeneration;
promote business support, investment and competitiveness; promote
employment; enhance the development and application of skills;
and contribute to the achievement of sustainable development.
These purposes apply equally to rural and non-rural parts of the
RDA's area. All of these purposes indicate that the RDA should
be working with the telecommunications' industry to improve ICT
provision in all rural areas. That provision must respect the
beauty and diversity of the countryside.
Anne and Peter Robinson
23 February 2003
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