UK Broadband Tax branded Unfair – rightly so
The BBC, among others, are reporting today that a proposed tax of 50p (0.5 GBP) per month to be levied against any (presumably residential) fixed telephone line has been deemed unfair by MPs.
Oddly it seems the MPs have gotten this one right, in my opinion at least. This tax would be used to fund ‘ultra-fast’ broadband along the lines that is already seen in more technologically advanced countries. Problem is that ISPs, along with all communications companies operating in the UK, are lazy and greedy. Why shell out for better infrastructure when they can still sell poor quality horrifyingly limited connections over copper-wire?
Better communications infrastructure is badly needed in the UK but tax is not the way to pay for it. Government intervention is needed to kick the ISPs up their ethernet and force them to pay to for the upgraded. ”BUT” I hear you cry “then they’ll pass on the charges to us!” – quite right! Problem is this: if the Government via tax were to foot the bill they’d still charge us more for their “improved and faster service, because we care about providing the best facilities possible”. So anyone paying for their internet connections will be stung – but if improvements were to be funded by tax we’d be stung twice >__<
Comments, thoughts?
I eagerly downloaded the dev version (up to version 4 already, crickey) and with great gusto I hammered in my login details and waited with baited (is that even the right spelling in this context? meh) breath for my Google Bookmarks to stream down.