More needs to be done to address problems with rural broadband, according to two North East MSPs.
Aberdeenshire West member Alexander Burnett said he had been inundated with complaints from “frustrated” residents in the Banchory area after a service outage that lasted for days.
Fellow Tory MSP Peter Chapman said those concerns were echoed when he attended a public meeting organised by the Alvah and Forglen Community Council.
The Scottish Government plans to roll-out superfast broadband to every home in Scotland in the next five years – and said it is “working to improve” the situation.
But Mr Burnett said: “It has been a very frustrating time for many of my constituents, including a number of local businesses who have faced great difficulty without internet access.
“We rely so much on broadband coverage for business purposes that any outage or slowdown has a serious impact.
“It is imperative that people in Aberdeenshire and rural parts of Scotland are not left behind. The Scottish Government needs to do all it can, not just to deliver on its pledge, but to make sure it happens as quickly as possible.”
Mr Chapman added: “Broadband coverage is an important issue, as we are not simply talking about the ability of households to access the internet or e-mail at home.
“Farmers increasingly use digital technology in the fields and it is crucial for any businesses that are not located in cities or towns.
“More and more now, school pupils are also using computers and tablets to do homework and research.
“It would be inherently unfair for young people in rural areas to miss out or suffer due to the lack of infrastructure investment.”
A Scottish Government spokesman said they were investing £410million in Digital Scotland Superfast Broadband, as well as supporting Community Broadband Scotland.
He added: “We are currently working to finalise the coverage footprint of both projects ahead of new public investment that will further extend broadband networks and are working closely with telecoms providers to improve resilience of the mobile and fixed telecom network.”
