NORTHUMBERLAND’S four MPs have set aside political differences to come together and boost the campaign for superfast broadband across the county.
Sir Alan Beith, the Liberal Democrat MP for Berwick, has signed a letter to the Minister for Communications, Ed Vaizey MP, along with Labour’s Ian Lavery (Wansbeck) and Ronnie Campbell (Blyth Valley), and Guy Opperman, the Conservative MP for Hexham.
All four MPs have thrown their weight behind Northumberland County Council’s bid for superfast broadband funding which is being submitted to the BDUK team.
Sir Alan said: “Having a fast broadband connection is vital to many people in our area. Many people work or run businesses from their home and they need a strong and reliable internet connection.
“I am pleased this is an issue that has cross-party support in Northumberland, as by working together we stand a better chance of improving broadband speeds in our area and not being left behind the rest of the country.”
Sir Alan has also launched an online survey so people from across Northumberland can let him know their experiences of the broadband connection they have where they live, and has already received many responses.
He added: “People are telling me that their broadband connection is often very poor – if they are lucky enough not to be reliant on dial-up.
“It is vital that we get as much information as we can about broadband speeds and what people use the internet for in our area so we can submit a strong bid to Government to get the extra funding we need to bring broadband in Northumberland into the 21st Century.”
His online survey can be found at www.AlanBeith.org.uk Data from it will be fed in to the county council for use in its submission.