Superfast broadband: Labour vs Tory  

There was a suggestion on the BBC this morning that Labour and Conservative broadband policies are similar. It is true that Labour have promised superfast broadband by 2017 - but short of a vacuous promise, they have not given any details of how they will get there. We have. Here are 3 reasons why our approach could not be more different: 1. We recognise that the only way to stimulate investment in superfast broadband is to end BT's monopoly on infrastructure and allow other operators to lay fibre in BT's pipes and ducts. We have committed to this - Labour has not. 2. We also believe that other infrastructure should be used e.g. telegraph poles, pylons, water mains etc and have said we will bring forward a bill to make this possible. 3. Labour says we will leave it to the "market." Not true. We have said we will continue the digital switchover levy on the BBC licence fee in future...