Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 20 January 2026
174. Deputy Brian Stanley asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport the person or body which will have ownership of the national broadband scheme at the point where roll-out and delivery has been completed; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3425/26]
View answerThe National Broadband Plan (NBP) is the Government's initiative to deliver high speed broadband services to all premises in Ireland.
The Programme for Government – Securing Ireland’s Future published in January 2025 sets a number of targets which include the completion of the installation of high-speed fibre broadband to 1.1 million people, including homes, farms, and businesses nationwide, by 2026.
The NBP contract, signed on 19 November 2019, is a 25-year agreement between the Minister and National Broadband Ireland (NBI) for the delivery of a future-proofed high-speed broadband to people living and working in the intervention area. The intervention area is identified by the AMBER area on the National Broadband Plan map which is available at www.gov.ie/en/publication/5634d-national-broadband-plan-map/ on my department’s website.
The NBP network will offer premises in the Intervention Area a high-speed fibre broadband service with a minimum download speed of 500Mbps from the outset. The network is future proofed to deliver up to 10Gbps speeds.
National Broadband Ireland (NBI) will own any new infrastructure it builds for the National Broadband Plan. However, where possible, some infrastructure i.e., poles and ducts is leased from commercial operators, NBI will be required to manage these assets over the full lifetime of the 25-year contract and is responsible for all associated costs where network assets must be maintained or replaced. Importantly, the Department retains responsibility for overseeing NBI’s performance and ensuring that NBI meets all contractual obligations throughout the entire 25-year term, and this oversight continues even after the 7-year deployment phase has been completed.
At the end of the contract, ownership of the network and associated infrastructure build reverts to NBI, however there is a commitment to maintain the services at no cost to the State for a further 10 years.
Under the National Broadband Plan (NBP) contract, National Broadband Ireland (NBI), will roll out a high-speed and future-proofed broadband network within the State Intervention Area, which is expected to be completed by the end of 2026 as per the commitment in the Programme for Government.
