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<p>The Government is committed to delivering nationwide gigabit capable broadband
as soon as possible. Much progress has already been made, with full fibre coverage
doubling in the past year to reach 10% of UK premises, according to the latest Ofcom
figures.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>This Government will continue to take action
to remove barriers to network rollout and to ensure that those in the hardest to reach
areas are not left behind. We have introduced legislation to make it easier for operators
to deploy broadband in blocks of flats, will be legislating to mandate gigabit connectivity
in new builds and will invest £5 billion of funding to support gigabit rollout in
hard to reach areas.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>Lancashire has 97.8% superfast
coverage, up from 37% in January 2011. In Blackpool, superfast coverage is 99.5%,
compared to the UK average of 96%. Blackpool City Council was successful in their
Local Full Fibre Networks (LFFN) Wave 2 bid for funding, and were allocated £3.1 million
to upgrade its fibre presence across the city using 20km of the existing duct tramway.
A separate company, ITS Technology Group, has extended its gigabit-capable broadband
services to the Fylde Coast by harnessing the local, publicly owned Cooperative Network
Infrastructure (CNI). This is currently live in Blackpool and is expanding across
the Fylde coast.</p><p> </p>
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