9:41am Thursday 29th November 2007
By Chris Gregory
AN ENTREPRENEUR has added his voice to a growing campaign for faster broadband in parts of Basingstoke.
Residents in Hatch Warren and Kempshott have complained the service is slow compared with the rest of Basingstoke because of the distance from the telephone exchange in the town centre.
Phil Simmons, of Monarch Close, Hatch Warren, runs a music entertainment company from home, and uses his broadband connection to control his clients' computers remotely.
But he said he will have to take drastic action if his broadband speed of 512Kbps does not improve.
He said: "It is now getting to the point where if I want to take on more work, I will have to move house. To get only 512Kbps is pathetic."
Basingstoke MP Maria Miller has said she will meet BT, which owns the telephone lines, to press for an improvement in broadband connection, after receiving a number of complaints from constituents in the area.
She said: "There are an increasing number of people now in Basingstoke who want to work from home.
"It is not acceptable that we do not have access to the most modern technology, or that people are suffering because they live far from the exchange.
"This is yet another example of how we have continued to expand the town without upgrading the local services."
Hatch Warren and Beggarwood councillor Harry Robinson believes there are a large number of people in Hatch Warren who work from home.
He said: "It seems extremely strange that we have a large number of people who cannot receive broadband at a speed acceptable for commercial purpose. I find that extraordinary."
Emma Littlejohn, a BT spokeswoman, said: "BT's ultimate goal is to make broadband available to anyone who wants it.
"BT therefore puts considerable energy and resource into trying to overcome difficulties with broadband provision by investigating alternative technologies, partnerships and other models."
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