George Eustice today welcomed a study praising the economic impact of superfast broadband in Cornwall. According to research carried out by Plymouth University, Superfast Cornwall, which is based at the Pool Innovation Centre, has succeeded in connecting 95% of Cornwall to fibre-optic broadband and has acted as a catalyst for economic growth in the area, bringing in £186.1 million of economic benefit.
Established in 2010, the Superfast Cornwall programme originally aimed to cover 80% of Cornwall and according to the study more than 12,000 Cornish companies are now connected to the high-speed network, resulting in 2000 new jobs being created and a further 2,500 safeguarded.
George Eustice said "High-speed Broadband is playing an important role in attracting new industries and better paid jobs to the area. Superfast Cornwall has been very successful in getting homes and businesses connected to fibre optic broadband. This improved connectivity has already attracted major companies like NetBooster to the constituency and the next step is to connect the remaining 5% of Cornwall to high-speed broadband.”