Residents of Hambleden in Oxfordshire were told that Sir Michael was trialling a new service that could be part of the various BT broadband deals in the future and that it was not possible to provide the rest of the properties with a similar service.

One resident said that he had been waiting for broadband to arrive for 5 years, but Sir Michael had been given access to broadband after living in the village for just 12 months. The resident went on to say that BT had told him it would cost nearly £70,000 to connect his own home up to a high speed broadband connection.

This incident is indicative of the wider problems facing those living in isolated communities. The current ADSL technology cannot supply homes that are a long way from their local telephone exchanges and installing fibre optic broadband requires a significant level of investment, which most believe is not met by the demand for broadband in rural areas.

Millions of UK homes are in the same position, although government funding and the broadband tax could help alleviate the situation in the coming years. However, universal broadband availability is still a long way off and the disheartening news received by Hambleden residents was met with a similar sense of helplessness by rural residents around the UK.

BT customers living in urban areas have less to be glum about. The next generation of Broadband Enabling Technology (BET) which Sir Michael is apparently trialling will be set to benefit town and city dwellers first and upcoming BT broadband deals should soon allow far more people to connect at high speeds in these areas.