Fury in the Broadband Dead Zone; DIGITAL BRITAIN FACES COMMUNICATIONS BREAKDOWN AS RURAL BUSINESSES ARE CUT OFF

Byline: SARAH BRIDGE Additional reporting by Kathryn Snowdon

GETTING through a bitter winter has been tough enough for farmer Steve Roberts, but as he prepares for the lambing season he has been hit by a problem that is plaguing many rural businesses - the failure to establish a fast and efficient broadband internet connection.

It is vital to Steve, 26, because by law, every one of the cattle on his Shropshire farm needs a 'passport' if it is moved to an abattoir - and applications have to be made online. As a business owner he will soon have to file VAT returns online and as chairman of the local Young Farmers' Club he relies on his computer to send countless documents.

'We may be farmers but we do a lot of our work online,' says Steve, who runs the 250-acre farm with his father, George, 61.

'Applying for cattle passports for every single animal will take forever with a dial-up connection and …

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Publication information: Article title: Fury in the Broadband Dead Zone; DIGITAL BRITAIN FACES COMMUNICATIONS BREAKDOWN AS RURAL BUSINESSES ARE CUT OFF. Contributors: Not available. Newspaper title: The Mail on Sunday (London, England). Publication date: February 21, 2010. Page number: 79. © 2009 Solo Syndication Limited. COPYRIGHT 2010 Gale Group.

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