British cities 'on course' to meet broadband target

Britain's cities are on course to meet a European Union (EU) target of having internet speeds of at least 30 Mbps by 2020, according to one analyst.

Richard Patterson, director of Broadband Expert, said the current average download rate in the UK is around six Mbps - but this should increase substantially when fibre optic broadband is rolled out to metropolitan areas.

However, this network will not cover rural and remote areas of the country.

Mr Patterson claimed Whitehall will have to provide "substantial" subsidies to support the extension of super-fast broadband to these locations.

"The government has put aside just £300 million, which in my opinion is too little to subsidise a nationwide fibre optic broadband network," he commented.

According to figures from the European Commission, the proportion of broadband lines in the EU with a minimum speed of ten Mbps increased from 15 per cent to 29 per cent in the 12 months to July.