§ Mr. RedwoodTo ask the President of the Board of Trade if the issue of the restriction on BT's business currently before the regulator is linked to the question of an Internet connection for every school. [10464]
§ Mrs. Beckett[holding answer 25 July 1997]: The Government are considering the issue of the regulatory restrictions which apply to BT, Mercury, Kingston and some other national public telecommunications operators. At the same time, Oftel is in discussion with the whole industry on options for delivering the Government's manifesto commitment to wire up schools to the information superhighway. Both of these issues are of key importance in the development of the UK's information society.
§ Mr. RedwoodTo ask the President of the Board of Trade if she expects British Telecommunications plc to offer a free Internet connection to every school. [10462]
§ Mrs. Beckett[holding answer 25 July 1997]: The Government welcome BT's proposal of a special deal for schools, which aims to link schools to the information superhighway with no connection charge, and provide access to advanced on-line services at affordable and predictable rates. The results of Oftel's current consultation on the proposal will help it to decide how to take the proposal forward so as to get the best possible deal for schools without harming competition. Whatever the final form of the proposal, the same package will be available to all schools who wish it.
It is of course up to individual institutions to decide whether and how to connect to on-line services, and to decide which services are most appropriate for them. The issue for Government is to make the options available, and to inform schools' choices. This will be promoted by the creation of the national grid for learning, on which we shall be consulting shortly.