New calls to nationalise broadband have led to collective sighs among Jeremy Corbyn supporters.
Writing in CityAM, Jon Seal said we either need to break up broadband monopolies or nationalise connectivity in order to protect consumers from rising prices.
Unlike in Europe, the UK connectivity infrastructure is monopolised, which has resulted in just 8 per cent of homes in the UK having full-fibre broadband compared to 71 per cent in Spain.
“The lack of competition in the market is to the detriment of connectivity and innovation, which in turn impacts business and opportunity”, Seal points out, adding:
“We should either open it out fully to the market so businesses can compete for customers, or nationalise it so that the responsibility solely lies with Government.”
In 2019, former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn unveiled an ambitious plan to nationalise part of BT and provide free broadband across the UK.
He said the service would become “our treasured public institution for the 21st century”.
“What was once a luxury is now an essential utility,” the Labour leader told an audience at Lancaster University. “I think it’s too important to be left to the corporations. Only the government has the planning ability, economies of scale and ambition to take this on.”
Corbyn portrayed the idea as a central element of “the most radical and exciting plan for real change the British public has ever seen” in the Labour manifesto, saying: “It’s going to knock your socks off – you’re going to love it.”
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