RESIDENTS of a Dunfermline development have hit out after delays in getting superfast broadband installed in their homes.

Middlebank Holdings was due to be connected in June last year as part of the Scottish Government's R100 programme.

However residents have now been told that there will now be a two year delay to the schedule.

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Dunfermline South councillor James Calder has expressed his dissatisfaction at the situation.

"Superfast broadband is extremely important local infrastructure, and it is extremely disappointing that residents at the edge of Dunfermline are facing big delays to the roll out," he said.

"When commitments are made they should be met, and I am demanding that there are no further delays to the rollout."

One resident, Keith Bedborough, said it was "extremely disappointing" that the installation date had been changed with no credible explanation.

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"The original target date was June 2022, then December 2022 and now June 2024," he said. "What confidence can we have that this date will not slip again?

"What is all the more frustrating is that the technical survey and design was completed by Openreach in 2018 when we examined this connection under a community funding proposal – hence one would expect it to be relatively straightforward to build the connection.

"Given that we exist in a digital world, and the government originally committed speeds of 30Mb/s to all rural property by end 2021, it's extremely frustrating to still be working and schooling remotely on unreliable 3Mb/s copper connections."

A Scottish Government spokesperson confirmed the work in Dunfermline is due to be done by next year.

“The Scottish Government's Reaching 100% (R100) and Digital Scotland Superfast Broadband programmes have already connected around one million properties across Scotland to faster broadband - despite telecommunications across the UK being entirely reserved to the UK Government," they said.

“We are investing more than £600 million through the R100 contracts, extending full fibre broadband to some of the hardest to reach communities. Work in Dunfermline is well underway and due to complete in 2024.

“Across central Scotland there has been greater levels of commercial build than had been anticipated. We are committed to ensuring that public spending is focused where it is needed most and continue to work with Openreach to explore whether there is more that could be done in areas that are not in commercial operators’ plans.”