BUSINESS in Ludlow and south Shropshire is fighting with one hand behind its back because of poor broadband it is claimed.

Andy Boddington, Shropshire Council for Ludlow North, says that the county is near the bottom of the league when it comes to internet access and being so rural is no excuse.

He has used information from Internet campaigner Patrick Cosgrove that looks at the differences in access to Internet in different parts of the county.

“If we were ahead in broadband, we would be ahead in business,” said Andy Boddington.

“Being ahead in business really matters. People in rural areas need jobs and they need well-paid jobs. We have seen no growth in the number of businesses in Shropshire since 2009.

“This compares to a growth of 9% across England. We’d have another 1,300 businesses in the county if we’d matched the 1.1% growth seen in the ten counties most similar to us since 2009.

“If we have flourishing businesses in our rural areas, the council will draw in more business rates that we can use to support business, communities and wellbeing.

“Whichever way it is looked at, Shropshire is performing badly on delivering broadband across the county.

“What disappoints me is the lack of ambition within Shropshire Council about what can be achieved. We are always told that things are difficult to do in Shropshire because we are rural. Being rural is a challenge but it is a challenge that this council was elected to rise to. It should not making excuses and must invest in the future of our county.

“Broadband, including superfast broadband, is essential. And it’s not just for business. More and more it is the way that we hear news, deliver education and health services, do our shopping, and keep in touch with our friends and family.

“In a rural area like ours, where services are often difficult to access because of their distance and a lack of public transport.

“Shropshire Council should set itself the challenge of keeping up with government national targets. It may well need to borrow money to do so.

“That’s what businesses across Shropshire and the country do. They borrow to invest and there can no better investment right now than broadband infrastructure.”

Councillor Steve Charmley, Shropshire Council Cabinet member responsible for broadband, said: “While we accept there remain challenges, the source statistics drawn upon by Councillor Boddington contain inaccuracies which do not provide a true reflection of the current position in Shropshire.

"In addition, the figures used do not take into account the independent commercial provision in the county from the likes of Userve Internet, Airband and Secure Web Services, all of which are able to provide superfast broadband to customers. These all have a direct impact on the perceived superfast coverage in Shropshire.

“We appreciate and acknowledge that there is still work to be done, however our fibre broadband rollout contract with BT remains ahead of schedule, and there remains money available, within difficult times, to continue our commitment to connect more homes and businesses.

"Had it not been for the Connecting Shropshire programme we would not have improved broadband coverage for nearly 50,000 premises to date.”