UK Labour party pledges free broadband funded in part by Silicon Valley tax
Fiber optic cables being installed in Germany. | Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty Images
The UK’s opposition Labour party has promised it will give free full-fiber broadband to every home and business in the country if it wins Britain’s upcoming December elections.
The party said it would nationalize part of UK telecoms firm BT to achieve its goal, and introduce new taxes on Silicon Valley tech giants like Apple and Facebook to fund the network’s maintenance.
Labour’s shadow chancellor John McDonnell told BBC News the plan would cost £20 billion ($25.74 billion), but would ensure that fast internet speeds were available in every corner of the UK. “It’s visionary I accept that, but other countries are having these visions and we’re not,” said McDonnell.
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