The government's countryside adviser has called for a greater emphasis on rural broadband and mobile coverage requirements.

Dr Stuart Burgess, who chairs the Commission on Rural Communities, said chancellor George Osborne should use this month's Growth Review to focus on improving the communications infrastructure in rural areas.

He told the Yorkshire Post that after affordable housing, the lack of high-speed broadband coverage is currently "the number one issue in rural communities throughout the whole of England".

Dr Burgess added: "If you get good broadband access and mobile phone coverage it's going to stimulate and help the rural economy."

The government has pledged to ensure that every UK home has access to broadband speeds of at least 2Mbps by 2015, but recent research from Ofcom revealed that predominantly rural areas such as North Yorkshire are still blighted by poor signal and "not spots".

One in five homes and businesses in certain parts of the region cannot even get a basic speed connection, leading to renewed claims that the digital divide between Britain's rural communities and urban districts is widening.

Labour MP Chi Onwurah, the shadow minister for innovation and science, described the lack of reliable broadband coverage in countryside areas as "a barrier to economic growth".

The Yorkshire Post has called for the government to reappraise its targets for super-fast broadband as part of the Give us a Fair Deal campaign, which sets out a range of ideas to boost the county's economy.

It wants every home and business in the region to have access to next-generation speeds by 2015, rather than the 90 per cent currently being targeted.

The newspaper has also said work should take place to improve the broadband services used by business parks and industrial developments in Yorkshire. 

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10th November 2011

This Government need watching every step of the way on superfast broadband delivery. Ofcom are now trying to play down the need for superfast broadband. They must be getting input from the Government to suggest this. Ofcom is not independent. The only audience left are the final third so it must be aimed at them. Perhaps they are seen as soft as they pay the most for less in broadband terms.