A new report is predicting that superfast broadband will deliver “thousands of new jobs” to Cornwall over the next 15 years.
The study, by Regeneris Consulting, predicts the high-speed technology is capable of contributing hundreds of millions pounds to the local economy.
The report predicts that over the next 15 years super-fast broadband investment could give the economy of a typical town a £143 million boost, create 225 new jobs and 140 new start-up businesses.
The Regeneris report also examines the wider impact of BT in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly through direct employment, expenditure with contractors and suppliers and the spending of its employees.
It shows that BT last year gave the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly economy a £55 million boost and was responsible for the employment of 584 people, including contractors. BT’s activities also supported more than 750 jobs through spending with suppliers and the expenditure of its employees.
Jon Reynolds, BT’s regional director for the south west, said: “This report demonstrates the great benefits that BT’s activities are delivering for Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly and the huge opportunities for local businesses and households offered in the years ahead by the roll-out of super-fast fibre broadband.
“It shows that fibre broadband will have a major and growing impact on the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly economy, encouraging investment, new businesses and jobs.”
The ‘Social Study 2012 – The Economic Impact of BT in the United Kingdom’ report analyses the positive contributions made by BT through the salaries and wages of employees and contractors, and the beneficial impact of its procurement and overall expenditure around the UK.
The full report is available here.
Does the report consider what BT will have delivered to Cornwall and how useful it will be in 15 years? Cornwall Council have, in my opinion, missed a huge opportunity to place Cornwall at the leading edge of Broadband connectivity, with an opportunity to upgrade to new Fibre Optic to the homes and businesses of its residents. Instead they chose to subsidise BT who are wringing a few more years out of the existing Copper infrastructure which began to be installed in the late 1800s.
My understanding is that the average Cornish BB customer can hope to see 20Mb, now and for the next decade or more. If we use Moore’s Law, and rather than 18 months we say technology doubles in 2 years, it would seem we will need 1Gb (1,000Mb) in 10 years time. What will Cornwall have? With the current offerings/plans they will have 20 or so, they won’t have 100Mb and they certainly won’t have 1,000Mb.
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