Meeting documents

The Portfolio Holder for Environment and Economic Development reminded Members of their ‘in principle’ decision to commit £640,000 to the Connecting Devon and Somerset (CDS) Superfast (broadband) Extension Programme (SEP).  She introduced Mr M Ballard, Project Manager for the Connecting Devon and Somerset (CDS) scheme.

The Project Manager provided Members with an update on the increased Broadband connectivity in the area which had been achieved during Phase 1 of the project and the proposed prioritisation of business dense postcode areas in the second phase. He advised that the procurement timetable detailed at Appendix 1 had moved and the clarification meeting between CDS and BT had been moved to 30^th June.  He suggested that Members may wish to defer and delegate their decision, or, reconvene before 30^th June to receive a more comprehensive report on which to base their decision, following signature of a non-disclosure agreement. 

The Assistant Director (Economy) advised that it had been hoped to provide Members with the likely number of the premises to be connected in Phase 2 however as SSDC had not signed the original non-disclosure agreement with CDS the figures had not been provided. 

 In response to questions from Members, the Project Manager advised that:-

·         SSDC had not been a contributing partner during Phase 1 of the CDS project and as the non-disclosure agreement had not been signed then commercially sensitive information could not be shared.   If SSDC became a contributing partner in Phase 2 then the detail of what their contribution would cover could be shared with Executive Members.

·         Phase 1 of CDS provided Superfast broadband to 90% of the CDS area.  Phase 2 was proposed to raise this to 95% coverage across the area. 

·         There were around 10,000 premises remaining to be connected during the SEP Phase 2 within the South Somerset area and these were areas more challenging and complex to connect.  

·         Satellite broadband was not superior but it was a solution in isolated areas where fibre broadband was not possible.

·         Funding provided by the European Union (EU) in Phase 2 was intended only for business connections. 

During a lengthy discussion, Members felt that the additional information which would be provided to them following signature of a satisfactory non-disclosure agreement was essential in order to identify where the remaining 5% of premises which the project would focus on would be.   It was proposed to defer the decision and convene a special joint meeting of the District Executive and Scrutiny Committees before 30^th June 2015 to re-consider the in principle commitment alongside additional detailed information on the programme, to be provided following the signature of a satisfactory non-disclosure agreement with Connecting Devon and Somerset (CDS).  This proposal was seconded and confirmed by all Members.