Europe’s most connected nation

Rosie Murray-West

More households are now using superfast broadband here than in Germany, France, Italy or Spain, with 43 per cent of UK customers using it. It is available to almost nine out of 10 premises in the UK according to Ofcom.

For businesses, the ability to stay ultra-connected makes the UK a good place to work. Rob Bence, director of property investment advice business RMP, says the reliability of UK broadband allows his business to operate remotely.

High broadband speed has allowed us flexibility in how we work, the locations we work from and the systems we use

Guy Levine, Return on Digital

“We’ve been able to get the best of the best, rather than choosing less qualified people simply because they lived within commuting distance,” he says. “We would never be able to operate in this way without fast, reliable broadband. It’s essential that we’re able to communicate easily.”

Guy Levine, chief executive of digital consultancy, Return on Digital, agrees. “High broadband speed has allowed us flexibility in how we work, the locations we work from and the systems we use because we are no longer tied to an old-fashioned server or telephone exchange,” he says. “Most importantly we can be quicker in how we work with our clients.”

These comments illustrate how important quality broadband is to Britain’s businesses, but how does the UK stack up against its European networks on the broadband charts?

The UK

Ofcom’s latest figures show the UK takes the top spot in most aspects of broadband coverage and internet use when compared with four close European neighbours.

Between 85 and 90 per cent of British households have access to the next generation broadband which is capable of faster speed. This is compared with just 44 per cent in Italy.

Figures show British people are taking full advantage of this, with 90 per cent of us online at least once a week, and 81 per cent of us ordering goods and services online during a year.

France

Our neighbours across the channel have slower connections, and use them less. According to Ofcom, only 40-45 per cent of households have access to next-generation broadband and just five in every 100 enjoy speeds of 300mb a second or above.

Perhaps as a result, fewer people take advantage of internet use, with 81 per cent going online at least once a week, compared with 90 per cent in the UK. Just 65 per cent order goods online in a year, compared with 81 per cent in the UK.

Germany

Despite Germany’s reputation for speed and efficiency, fewer German households enjoy broadband speeds of over 30mb per second than in the UK – just eight in 10, compared with nine in 10 here.

Take-up for internet shopping is lower than in the UK, with 73 per cent ordering goods online each year. Eighty-four per cent of people go online at least once a week, compared with 90 per cent in the UK.

Spain

Availability of fast broadband in Spain is far lower than in the UK with between 70 and 75 per cent of households having access to next generation broadband.

A smaller percentage of people shop online – just 42 per cent in the past 12 months, and only three-quarters of people get online once a week.

Italy

Only a quarter of Italians shop online, Ofcom figures show, while 63 per cent go online once a week. That’s possibly because speeds are slow – only five per cent use speeds over 30mb a second, perhaps because these speeds are only available to 35 to 40 per cent of premises in Italy./Agencies