Minister visits Imperial College Business School to launch government broadband strategy

Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt unveils his plan to roll out superfast broadband across the UK

By Tanya Gubbay 
Tuesday 16 August 2011

The Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport, Jeremy Hunt, visited Imperial College Business School today to launch the government’s new broadband strategy. He announced a £362 million government investment to roll out broadband to all homes and businesses in England and Scotland.

"It is apt that the Minister has chosen Imperial College Business School to launch this strategy," said Professor David Gann, Head of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, "Here, much of our research is concerned with the future of the digital economy, and superfast broadband will underpin the next few decades."

The new strategy forms part of the £530 million pledged to ensure that the UK has the best broadband network in Europe by 2015, with 90 per cent of homes and businesses having access to superfast broadband and for everyone in the UK having access to at least 2Mbps.

"Through the Digital City Exchange programme at Imperial, we have identified a number of opportunities where data across different sectors can be combined and the announcement today will undoubtedly unlock the opportunity to develop digital city applications in health, transport, waste, the environment and many public services," added Professor Gann.

"This investment will help to transform the UK economy, providing the platform on which UK-based firms can innovate, compete and lead internationally."

Arriving early in the morning, the Minister was shown the latest technology being developed at Design London, a collaboration between Imperial and the Royal College of Art to combine science, engineering, business and creative design in order to enhance innovation in business and the public sector.

Professor David Gann demonstrates the 3D facility at Design London

The Minister visited a life-sized, 3D image of an ambulance at the Innovation Technology Centre. The virtual facility has been set-up to help those in business and academia explore the most effective design options by allowing them to fully examine and virtually walk around a model before a product is manufactured.

The party then moved onto the reception of Imperial College Business School, where the Minister met professors from across Imperial who are working together on the Digital City Exchange programme. The researchers are investigating how digital technologies can boost the capabilities of the energy, health, transport and utility resources in our cities, so that that they can run as effectively as possible. On hand to explain the work was Professor John Polak, Head of the Centre for Transport Studies, Professor Chris Hankin, Director of the Institute for Security Science and Technology, and Jonathan Haskel, Professor of Economics at Imperial College Business School.