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Kent County Council praises govt broadband funding
The government's decision to award £10 million of broadband funding to Kent has been praised by the county council.
Announcing the investment, Communications Minister Ed Vaizey praised the enthusiasm that Kent and Medway councils have shown for improving broadband connectivity.
This money has been allocated to Kent as part of the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition's plan to deliver super-fast broadband to 90 per cent of homes and businesses, with speeds of 2Mbps for the remaining premises.
The state aid is set to be matched by KCC, while a further £20 million is likely to be generated by the internet service provider - or providers - chosen to carry out the deployment.
Speaking to the Kent and Sussex Courier, cabinet member for regeneration and economic development at the local authority Kevin Lynes described the government funding as "very welcome" and pointed out that KCC has been involved with the process of delivering faster internet access since 1992.
"We have enjoyed varying degrees of success - some areas have it, others don't," the councillor admitted. "We now have the money and the plan to finish the job.
"This is primarily about business and all about growth, including attracting new business startups to Kent."
However, Mr Lynes stressed the county council must still provide the government with "solid evidence" that local residents and businesses are eager to access super-fast broadband.
"We will begin canvassing and mounting a demand aggregation campaign within a month," he explained.
People will be able to register their internet in the technology by completing a questionnaire online, by letter or by telephone. If the government is convinced that genuine demand exists for faster broadband access, the £10 million of funding is expected to be signed off in October.
Contracts for the work are then set to be awarded in November, with the process of surveying sites due to start the following month.