mobile broadband

Broadband Tax Has Been Axed

There is money to use for funding broadband expansion after all!

Earlier plans to fund the broadband development with a certain landline tax were ditched in yesterday's budget. The roll-out of fibre-optic broadband across the UK will be funded by the TV licence fee.

This was announced after the chancellor confirmed the idea that the government would scrap a somewhat controversial telephone tax.

It was Labour?s idea that broadband expansion into UK rural regions should be paid by means of a 50p monthly tax on landlines. George Osborn commented on the landline duty imposed by the previous government, calling it 'archaic' and underlining the fact that it is a blow upon thirty million households connected to a fixed telephone line.

He also mentioned how happy he is to be able to abolish this duty before it is introduced.
What George Osborn is planning to use instead is cash left over from the digital TV switchover.

It seems that it cost less than everybody had expected. Moreover, certain private firms will continue to finance the broadband development in the UK.

This announcement follows what culture secretary Jeremy Hunt said, namely that he would ignore the previous government's plans for Independently Funded News Consortia and use the money for broadband expansion purposes.