THE Conservative Parliamentary candidate for North Cornwall Scott Mann paid a visit to a business near Launceston last week with broadband minister Matt Hancock.

The pair went to Coombe Farm Cottages in Trewen to meet owners Louise and Jeremy Conway and discuss broadband and mobile.

Jeremy said: “We get between about 1 and 2.5Mbps which when you are running a small business doesn’t help.

“Scott has been very proactive and the minister listened to our problems. They have just got the Bill through which will help. It’s still a few years off but at least we know at some point we’ll get at least 10Mbps.

“Taking bookings — people phone up and it takes forever taking their information. Our clients want internet access and we have got very limited access.

“We have got four cottages. If they have all got two to four children in using the internet it tends to be pretty slow or non existent. It’s pretty important for us as a business and for our clients to have good internet.”

Louise added: “I have been campaigning quite hard to improve the broadband here. Speeds are ridiculously slow. It’s not fair, it makes us uncompetitive.

“Scott agreed to attend a local parish meeting and said it’s one of the issues he gets the most in North Cornwall, the most popular complaint.

“He told us a few things about how we can try to improve it as a community. The next thing I’m getting a call, can Matt Hancock come and visit? That was quite exciting. He seems to be really trying to help.”

Mr Mann said Coombe Farm Cottages is ‘a classic example of a rural business which not only relies on broadband to operate, but which its customers also expect a decent internet connection while staying in their holiday accommodation’.

He added: “We discussed with Louise and Jeremy how the Conservative Government has taken steps to ensure broadband is more accessible. This includes a Universal Service Obligation of 10Mbps and a reformed Electronics Communication Code which will allow mobile phone companies to build and upgrade masts easier.

“These measures are being legislated for in the Digital Economy Bill which I worked on last year, and when Parliament starts again after the election, the Bill will become law.”

Broadband minister Matt Hancock said: “Scott Mann has worked incredibly hard in Parliament with me and with others to get the Digital Economy Bill through and that gives a universal service for broadband that means that everybody’s going to have the right to high speed broadband and you can just see the impact that’s going to have in places like North Cornwall where businesses need broadband and people expect it and now we’re going to be able to deliver because of the change in the law Scott helped me bring about.”

- Also standing in the North Cornwall Constituency is John Allman (Christian People’s Alliance), Joy Bassett (Labour Party), Robert Hawkins (Socialist Labour Party), Dan Rogerson (Liberal Democrats).