Broadband Speeds

Portsmouth has faster internet connection than most of the UK, new data shows.

08:40 12 June 2020

Figures released by the House of Commons Library have revealed that Portsmouth has faster internet connection than most of the UK. Paulsgrove East, the fastest area in Portsmouth, enjoys 95.1Mbps while Fratton West and Portsea have an average of 68 Mbps, which is still faster than the average for the rest of the country of just 60.9 megabits per second. 

 

Chief executive officer of Shaping Portsmouth, Stef Nienaltowski, said: "About 80per cent of businesses I have spoken to in the last weeks have relied massively on their online presence and using the internet.

 

"We ran a Shaping Portsmouth conference recently and 93 people were able to join us individually on a video call and it was almost flawless. Imagine tying to do that without fast broadband. 

 

"I don't think we are going to see a return to the "old normal" desk-based way of working. Therefore we have got to change our infrastructure to support this."

 

He added: "The fact that we already have faster internet than the UK average and that we're having fibre optic internet rolled out soon reinforces the idea that Portsmouth is in a good position to lead the way for technology-based business. 

 

Councillor Suzy Horton, the council's education cabinet member, said: It's good to hear we're in a better position than other places. 

 

"The impact could not be starker at the moment when we know that so far during the pandemic the majority of children have been doing some form of learning at home with digital means. But moving forward for both the short and long term there's going to be some level of digital engagement from home. 

 

"We need to make sure there's digital equality in our city, which means access to devices for all children as well as decent speed internet. We should use this time to make sure there is equality in that way."