The Government has promised to contribute half a billion pounds to rolling out super-fast broadband in rural areas.

The funding was announced as part of the Comprehensive Spending Review, which outlined the Government's plans to slash the deficit and included cutting half a million public jobs.

As part of the review, the BBC's license fee has been frozen for the next six years, but Chancellor George Osborne said the BBC would still have to contribute some £300 million of "the £530 million we will spend over the next four years to bring super-fast broadband to rural parts of our country that the private sector will take longer to reach."

The Government had previously said money for broadband could be found in leftover cash from the digital switch over fund.

He said pilot programmes would go ahead in the Highlands and Islands, North Yorkshire, Cumbria and Herefordshire, with two million homes given better connections over the next four years.

"All of this will help encourage the growth of our creative industries as a key part of the new economy we are seeking to build."

Science

The Government didn't cut funding to science and research, instead finding efficiencies of £324 million in the budget via a recent review.

"Britain is a world leader in scientific research and that is vital to our future economic success," Osborne said. "That is why I am proposing that we do not cut the cash going to the science budget. It will be protected at £4.6 billion a year."

Meanwhile, green technologies were handed investment of £1 billion.

"Research and technological innovation will also help us with one of the greatest scientific challenges of our times – climate change – and it will support new jobs in low-carbon industries," he said.

Read more: Government promises £530 million for rural broadband | Broadband | News | PC Pro http://www.pcpro.co.uk/news/broadband/3 ... z131Kcf7Zq




Rural broadband? How?

I thought we (as a country) were skint.

They only promised, they don't actually have to do it. or if they do, just verrrrry slooooooowly

And probably only in villages where a MP has a home, even if it is just their second or third home.

My cynicism says that they are doing this to make sure their country seats are safer. Plus keep the tory and lib dem back benchers who are country constituency MPs in line.

Even so I am still in favour of improvements to the rural network. It is not just rich land owners who live in the country.