Taoiseach Leo Varadkar (right) with David McCourt, who is leading the consortium that is the only bidder for the National Broadband Plan at Science Foundation event in new York in 2016

Hmm.

Previously: ‘An All-Too Familiar Vista In Major Communications Contracts’

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36 thoughts on “Smells Wiffy

  1. Dr.Fart MD

    the government always get heavily overcharged for everything because they’ve always paid whatever the cost because they don’t care, it’s not their money, and they don’t have the negotiation skills because most of em only have experience as fupping primary school teachers.

  2. Emily Dickinson

    Dumb question perhaps, but are we not reaching the point where mobile technology is rendering this project redundant?

      1. Cian

        There are areas where ‘cheap’ wireless coverage is not cost effective.

        This is why wired broadband is so expensive – the population density is just too low to be cost effective.

        1. realPolithicks

          Providing broadband access to all citizens is as important as electrifying the country was 80 years ago. This should be done whether it is “cost effective” or not, everything can’t be measured in euro’s and cent.

          1. Cian

            Are you seriously saying that broadband is equivalent to electricity?

            No. A better comparison might be to upgrade the ESB supply so every house in the country can fast-charge an electric car. That’s not going to happen anytime soon.

          2. realPolithicks

            Sometimes I read your comments and I think that you are yanking our chains, but it appears that you actually believe this BS…astonishing!

          3. Cian

            The feeling is mutual.

            There is a phone line in most houses in the state (or one can be got easily). Through that everyone can access the internet (albeit slowly via dialup). This is equivalent to the rural electrification. Each house got one or two lights and one socket.

            90% of internet traffic is video and file-sharing. So rural broadband will just give the farmers porn-on-demand.

          4. Rob_G

            This is fine, so long as rural broadband users pay a connection fee that covers the cost of the rollout, and pay a rate that reflects the increased cost in delivering the service to them as compared to urban dwellers.

  3. eoin

    Sorry, is he talking about the NBP or the NCH? (wasn’t the original cost of the NBP €500 million?)

    What links the NBP to the NCH?
    Siteserv is a contractor for both (and Siteserv was sold off by the State-owned bank, under Leo’s party’s watch, to a FG donor in controversial circumstances and that sale is the main subject of a commission of investigation that’s been ongoing for nearly four years).

    It is just incompetence, sleaze or worse?

    1. dav

      “It is just incompetence, sleaze or worse?”
      This is Ireland, where low standards in high office is the norm..

  4. Zaccone

    People who choose to live in one-off rural builds should be forced to pay more to receive state services like electricity, broadband etc – it costs far too much to supply them on an equal cost basis.

    One-off rural builds are undoubtedly lovely and spacious, surprisingly cheap, devoid of noise etc. But they’re also a blight on our infrastructure development. If someone chooses to live in one they should be fine with the additional financial costs incurred.

    1. Mickey Twopints

      Those who choose to live in urban areas with regular bus services, trains and trams, libraries, swimming pools, playgrounds, post offices, police stations, and hospitals should pay higher taxes than the rural dwellers who have little or none of these although they pay for them.

        1. Mickey Twopints

          Don’t think so. There’s nothing on my yokemebob from Revenue to say that my tax credits/codes are determined by my address. Is there something like that on yours?

          1. Rob_G

            Urban dwellers already pay for the services that they receive. Rural dwellers do not pay for any services that urban dwellers receive; they don’t cover the cost of the services that they receive themselves, nevermind anyone else’s

          2. Cian

            My property tax is determined by house value.

            Property values in cities are much higher than the countryside (for comparable property). So yes, the city-dwellers pay more tax than their country cousins.

        2. Cian

          Dublin is by far the biggest source of revenue for the State. In total, €22 billion in tax was raised in Dublin in 2017. This represents 56 per cent of the State’s total tax take, despite having only an estimated 38 per cent of the country’s population.

          Dublin accounts for 61 per cent (€7 billion) of VAT receipts; 52 per cent (€8.5 billion) of PAYE/USC income tax; 45 per cent (€1.1 billion) of self-employed income tax; 62 per cent (€5 billion) of corporation tax receipts, and 43 per cent (€360 million) of capital gains tax receipts.

          http://www.davidmcwilliams.ie/dublin-generates-56-of-irish-tax-but-cant-keep-a-cent-of-it/

          1. Mickey Twopints

            Sigh.

            I don’t know why I bother. But anyway…

            Revenue report statistics based on the location of the office submitting the returns. If a major employer in Cork process their payroll in an admin building in Galway, the figures are reflected in the tax take for Galway.

          2. Rob_G

            Ok.

            Are there really that many business conglomerates in, say, Longford, that are processing their payroll in Dublin that can account for this discrepancy?

          3. Mickey Twopints

            No idea.

            I do know that there are many large nationwide employers who report their taxes in Dublin.

        1. Spaghetti Hoop

          Pre-1963, yes. The point is, why should those living in them pay more for essential services? That’s not really fair to penalise somebody because of uncontrolled ribbon development and poor or no town planning a couple of generations ago.

          1. Cian

            Because broadband isn’t an essential service.

            That’s not really fair to penalise somebody because of uncontrolled ribbon development and poor or no town planning a couple of generations ago.
            True, so why are city-dwellers being penalised (through higher taxation) to pay for a national rollout of broadband to the country dwellers? Just so they can get Spotify or Netflix.

  5. phil

    Good news, it looks like we have identified a pattern , possibly some sort of corruption , the next step now will be for a investigative reporter to look into it , they will expose far more details, then the Gardai will get involved , the government will then pass legislation , then problem will be solved and we can all move on with the knowledge that though bad things happen from time to time, corrections are quickly made and the system works…

    Thats what usually happens, No?

  6. Truth in the News

    Who has calculated the inflated figures, how much is fiber optic cable and external pole mounted
    splice/termination boxes made and supplied by Acome and 3M respectively to Eir and how are
    Eir funding this initial roll out, when they have significant borrowings and where the actual take
    up is under 20 percent and there is a duplication of services where Eir are still using a copper
    pair to provide telephone services and a fiber strand to provide broadband, given bandwith of
    fiber, why has telephony not migrated from copper:

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