The Channel reacts to Corbyn’s nationalised Openreach plan
WHEREVER YOU SIT on the
political spectrum there was one
proposed policy which came out
of the Labour camp in the run
up to the election which was
sure to raise an eyebrow – the
nationalisation of Openreach.
Under the plans Labour will
deliver free full-fi bre broadband
to all individuals and businesses
by 2030. They will integrate
the broadband-relevant parts
of BT into a new public entity,
British Broadband, with a
mission to connect the country.
Labour will aim to deliver free
full-fi bre broadband to at least
15-18 million premises within fi ve
years.
John McDonnell, Labour’s
Shadow Chancellor, commented
in a speech at the University of
TOM O’HAGAN, CEO OF VIRTUAL1: “Labour
winning the election and nationalising
BT with free fi bre broadband for all is
terrifying. This smacks of desperation
and is clearly not thought through
at all. It would kill innovation in the
sector, give consumers and business
zero choice and potentially put tens
of thousands of people in the industry
out of work. We are actually in a really
exciting period with fi bre builds,
Openreach and many alternative
fi bre operators are actively building
networks across the UK – Yes it takes
time but there is lots of investment
coming into the sector and creating
jobs while providing a competitive
landscape. What happens to the
companies that have invested and
committed billions so far?”
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SACHIN VAISH, MD OF VAIONI: “I’m
gobsmacked at what I heard with labour
planning on making broadband free for
all! How exactly are labour planning on
doing this, without destroying all the
ISP’s, Telco’s and more recently the
Altnets revolutionising the UK broadband
market? We are just about to start one
of the most exciting journeys in the
broadband market. Labour have gone
mad if they think they are going to
break-up BT and destroy one of the best
industries we have. What is going on
with parliament?”
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Lancaster, “We are announcing
our mission today to deliver
free full-fi bre broadband to all
by 2030. To achieve that, as
Jeremy has already indicated,
we will roll out the remaining
90% of the full-fi bre network.
We’ll acquire the necessary
access rights to the existing
10% of the full-fi bre network
that has already been rolled
out. To achieve these things
we’ll create a new entity, British
Broadband.
That entity will bring the
broadband-relevant parts of BT
into public ownership. That will
include Openreach, which has
installed the majority of existing
full-fi bre coverage, and parts of
BT Technology, BT Enterprise,
and BT Consumer.”
BART DELGADO, MD OF AKIXI: “I have
thought a little about this and to be fair, I
don’t think the FREE Broadband policy is
an industry losing vote for Corbyn, I don’t
think he would have had many votes from
our sector in the fi rst place anyway.
I think the vast majority of people in
this dynamic sector are, well… dynamic!
They see the opportunities this sector
can provide them for a career and that
inevitably means that you are less likely
to want to have a Marxist, everyone
shares everything, ownership is robbery,
type mentality. Your typical employee in
this sector is a go-getter and that is part
of the very thing that makes this market
great and a privilege to be part of.”
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