Shetland 'could be left behind in Scottish fibre broadband rollout'

The government's investment in fibre optic broadband technology could leave Shetland lagging behind the rest of the UK.

Earlier this week, the Scottish government announced a £264 million investment in the technology that will help to bring super-fast speeds within reach of 85 per cent of homes and businesses across the country.

However, only 60 per cent of Shetland properties are set to receive access to speeds of 30Mbps or more in the next four years. This has led Northern Isles MP Alistair Carmichael to demand meetings with Highland and Island Enterprise to ensure that local residents and businesses are not left in the broadband slow-lane, reports Shetland News.

The politician also revealed he will be asking officials for details of how the additional broadband funding will be spent.

Mr Carmichael said it is no longer acceptable for broadband to be thought of as "some sort of luxury".

"It is as important to the future sustainability of our communities as having a supply of water or electricity," he insisted.