Lerwick first Scottish island town to get fibre broadband

Lerwick, a major town on the Shetland islands, is to become the first community on the Scottish isles to gain access to superfast fibre optic broadband as part of the Digital Scotland rollout programme.

The £410 million scheme aims to connect 84 per cent of residences and businesses based across the Highlands and Scottish islands to the superfast service by 2016 by working closely with BT.

Nicola Sturgeon, Deputy First Minister of Scotland, said: "This is an important step towards ensuring that Scotland has world-class digital connectivity by 2020 … This will be a key factor in ensuring Scotland's long-term economic prosperity."

Brendan Dick, Director of BT Scotland, also commented on the arrival of the high-speed internet service in Lerwick. He said it marked "an important next phase" in the Digital Scotland programme.

Alongside Lerwick, homes and businesses in Keith in Moray are also set to gain access to fibre broadband, with Nairn, Fort William and Dingwall next in line to receive the superfast service. 

Altogether, approximately 6,000 premises across the Scottish Highland and island communities will be covered by the rollout programme.