A lot of news is the same old story cropping up again. Owl has lost track of how often poor Broadband in rural areas has been the subject of previous posts. Do we have to have a national emergency every time we need something done?

The Sunday Times  www.thetimes.co.uk (need to scroll down)

Internet providers are under pressure to increase capacity in suburban and rural areas as staff are forced to desert their offices and stay at home.

Demand for video- conferencing services such as Zoom has risen sharply as workers rush to find alternatives to face-to-face meetings. Home internet connections are slowing as more people log on, with parents working from home and most children unable to attend school after Friday’s forced closure.

Britain lags behind other developed nations in the rollout of high-speed internet. Ofcom, the communications regulator, reported in December that about three million homes and businesses — 10% of UK users — have access to ultra-fast, full-fibre broadband.

This compares with more than 80% in South Korea.

The shutdown of much of the country could accelerate the rollout of full-fibre broadband, however.

Steve Holliday, the former boss of National Grid who heads the challenger broadband network CityFibre, said that, with the roads less busy, the start-up was able to lay more cables.

The upshot of millions working from home is that “more and more people will realise . . . they don’t have full-fibre”, he said.

Boris Johnson has pledged to ensure that all homes have access to full-fibre broadband by 2025.