65,000 Scottish Homes and Businesses Set to Receive Gigabit Broadband.

Chris has welcomed the UK Government’s expansion of Project Gigabit to include the Stirling and Strathallan constituency.

The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology recently announced a £157 million contract with broadband provider Openreach to deliver gigabit-capable broadband to up to 65,000 premises across Central, Northern, and Western Scotland—including parts of Stirling and Strathallan.

This announcement follows a series of meetings between Chris and Building Digital UK (BDUK), the agency responsible for improving broadband and mobile coverage in hard-to-reach areas. During these discussions, Chris highlighted the urgent need for high-speed connectivity in rural parts of the constituency.

This latest investment from the UK Government will significantly improve digital connectivity in Stirling and Strathallan. It will benefit communities that would otherwise remain underserved by commercial broadband rollouts, supporting local economies and unlocking new opportunities for residents, no matter where they live.

BDUK will oversee the contract and work closely with the Scottish Government to ensure the project complements the Reaching 100% (R100) programme wherever possible.

Chris said: “Many rural communities in Stirling and Strathallan have been left behind by commercial broadband providers. As a result, residents have missed out on everyday opportunities like working from home, while local businesses have been unable to take full advantage of connecting their systems and services online.”

“I’m delighted that the UK Government is investing in our area. This will finally bring fast and reliable internet to those who have been sidelined for too long.”

Chris raised the case of Balquhidder Community Broadband in the chamber this week. Balquhidder Community Broadband is a group of volunteers who laid 34 kilometres of fibre cable to bring gigabit broadband to the rural village, years before a commercial supplier would have reached them.

However, for the past year, they have been unable to engage with the government’s payment teams to recoup the money promised through a voucher scheme. Chris asked Sir Chris Bryant, the Minister of State for Data Protection and Telecoms, to meet with him to resolve this case. 

The full question read: “In my constituency, residents of the rurally isolated community of Balquhidder did not wait for a major provider; they dug and laid 34 km of fibre optic cable themselves using the Government’s broadband voucher scheme to partner with a small business and deliver gigabit broadband—a remarkable achievement. That success is now at risk, however, because for well over a year the Government payment processes have been struggling to engage with the volunteer-led project. Will the Minister meet me to help resolve that, and will he join me on a visit to the beautiful Balquhidder glen to see at first hand what that resourceful and determined community have delivered?”

Sir Chris Bryant responded: “Everybody tells me that Balquhidder is very beautiful—in fact, my hon. Friend told me earlier this morning. I would be interested in a visit if it were also possible to visit the new film studio that I think might be coming to his constituency. Stirling is one matter, but Strathallan and the very wide rural areas in his constituency are different. I would be very happy to try to sort out the specific issues that he has in Balquhidder.”