Jess Brown-Fuller MP Raises Concerns over Project Gigabit Descoping in Chichester

2 hours ago
2 min read

Jess Brown-Fuller has raised concerns in Parliament after almost all premises in the Chichester constituency were descoped from the Project Gigabit contract for East and West Sussex, currently being delivered by CityFibre.

Speaking in the House, Brown-Fuller said that hundreds of her constituents had been left "bitterly disappointed" by the government's recent decision to cancel the latest stages of Project Gigabit. She told MPs that Chichester received not a single completed upgrade from the project, and that all households and businesses due to benefit had been included in the scheme's later stages, meaning they have now missed out entirely. She called on the Leader of the House to arrange an urgent meeting between herself and the relevant Minister at the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT).

Jess Brown-Fuller highlights the failures of Project Gigabit, the UK government's £5 billion programme to deliver lightning-fast, gigabit-capable broadband to 'hard-to-reach' rural communities.

Around 4,650 premises in Chichester were originally included in the scope of the contract. However, Building Digital UK (BDUK) and CityFibre have agreed not to progress with the later stages of the contract, which were not yet in delivery, after commercial coverage was found to extend further than suppliers had previously indicated. As a result, fewer premises now require public subsidy, and the contract has been redesigned to minimise overlap with commercial rollout plans and ensure the best use of public money.

Following this decision, almost all premises in Chichester have been removed from the contract's scope. Of these, approximately 1,760 already have access to a gigabit-capable broadband connection, and a further 400 are included in future commercial delivery plans.

For the remaining premises still requiring support, BDUK is working to put alternative coverage solutions in place as soon as possible. A market engagement consultation for suppliers was published on 1 June to gauge supplier interest in delivering coverage to the affected premises still in need.

Brown-Fuller is continuing to press the government for urgent clarity on timescales for these alternative solutions, to ensure Chichester residents are not left behind as the rollout of gigabit-capable broadband continues.