We always welcome a Letter to the Editor to share with our readers. They come from all over the Island, this one from John Smith in St Helens says. In his own words – Ed
I notice you post a link to the Council website where they are asking for support for the superfast broadband scheme.
It is sadly ironic that at this very moment in time, severe cuts are being made across the Island and they are impacting many people including the most vulnerable and frail in our communities.
This Council has insisted it has no option but to cut over £3M from the social care budget this year alone (similar amounts in future years), telling us it MUST balance the budget and make good the central government shortfall in funding.
Impact is far-reaching
These cuts have impacted far more than the 32 service users that the Council claim were affected by their losing the Judicial Review case over raising the threshold criteria.
My understanding is that well over 2,000 client hours per week have been cut from the Social Care budget and that translates into over 250 older, vulnerable and frail people losing part or all of their care & support to enable them to remain independent and at home.
Imagine then, if you will, this current scheme – driven by commercial interests and aspirations of BT – together with the Chamber of Commerce, Natural Enterprise and the Council which requires £3M of Public money from the Council to enable high speed broadband across the Island!
Does Council really have £3m available for *luxury* schemes?
Not, I might add, providing broadband to rural areas where none exists but to increase the speed of the existing broadband provision. It seems to me that if this Council has £3m available for *luxury* schemes (for that is what high speed broadband essentially amounts to – existing speeds in the major towns is easily satisfactory for most everyday usage) then it ought to be spent taking care of the most vulnerable and needy in our community.
This is a disgraceful use of Public monies … AT THIS MOMENT IN TIME.
In less austere times, when severe cuts were not being made, I’m sure a reasonable case might be made for such investment but at the very same time as the cuts are being made this is a ludicrous plan.
Do you think you might like to offer up to your readers the *true* cost of supporting this plan? The fact that older vulnerable and frail people are suffering and that the Council ought to reconsider such an investment for the time being, at least.
20Mb in Ryde
I notice that existing speeds of broadband are being ‘talked down’ by both the Council (they claim an average speed of 1.5Mb across the Island!) and Natural Enterprise who claim the maximum speed available on the Island is 7Mbs (I belive this to be absolute nonsense, as Ryde have had between 12 and 20Mb for at least two years).
A wider debate that included the finances the Council have available for all of the Island community, the real cost of cuts to Social Care whilst investing the money saved elsewhere, and the reality of having a superfast broadband speed – what that actually means to the majority of people and business’s on the Island.
Just asking for support for this scheme is very myopic, frankly.
Image: Christopher Isherwood under CC BY 2.0
