#digital-exclusion

#digital-exclusion

Everyone in the UK has the legal right to get download speeds of 10mbps (megabits per second) - typically fast enough to stream TV programmes. Video content will buffer below that, while picture-heavy websites will take longer to load. Yet Daily Mail analysis naming and shaming England's broadband blackspots shows 9% of homes in West Devon reliant on fixed line connection can't physically get that speed. Last month for comparison, average download speeds were clocked at 10.7mbps in Libya, 11.9mbps in Cameroon

It is 21 years since Tony Blair's government made proposals for an ID card system to tackle illegal working and immigration, and to make it more convenient for the public to access services. The same issues are on the agenda again as Keir Starmer revives what became one of New Labour's most controversial policies. He is about to find out if he can defeat the argument that David Cameron's Conservatives

Silver Voices, an over-60s lobby group, branded the move "disgraceful" and argued it amounted to discrimination against those who struggle with technology. Director Dennis Reed said: "They are effectively saying they don't want older people as passengers. This will cause chaos and isolate people who don't have smartphones. If someone turns up at the airport without the app, what happens - are they simply turned away?"