Full fibre broadband is going to be made available to 3.2m homes and businesses in some of the UK's most remote areas by the mid-2020s.
BT subsidiary Openreach has outlined new plans to improve digital connectivity in 'hard to reach' rural areas.
It is part of BT’s £12bn plan to connect 20m UK homes to fibre optic cables in the next decade.
Full-fibre broadband uses a fibre optic cable to connect to households without using any copper cable.
FTTP connections are capable of download and upload speeds over 1 Gbps. It is currently the fastest and most reliable broadband technology.
The Country Land and Business Association (CLA) has been campaigning for improved digital connectivity in rural areas for years.
Responding to the announcement, CLA president Mark Bridgeman said the announcement from Openreach was a' welcome step towards eradicating the digital divide between urban and rural areas'.
“Connectivity has played a vital part in home working during the Covid-19 pandemic and, with many businesses considering a move to the countryside, it’s essential that rural communities continue to receive better coverage.
“Greater digital connectivity in the countryside will play a critical role in the nation’s economic recovery, allowing businesses to invest, grow and recruit long into the future,” Mr Bridgeman said.
According to a survey by the NFU, just 16 percent of farmers have access to superfast download speeds of 24 Mbps or more.
