Brighton fights against BT's broadband rollout

BRITISH TELECOM (BT) is facing a fight from the residents of Brighton in its battle to bring broadband up to scratch in the town.

Apparently the locals are up in arms at the positioning of cabinets that BT uses to house equipment to provide its "superfast" broadband. Conservation groups are complaining that they are not being consulted when it comes to the placement of the cabinets.

BT Openreach, the arm of the telecoms giant that deals with such matters, has been applying for planning permission for its cabinets. A number of the applications have been granted by the city council, however the conservation groups are claiming that Openreach is putting the cabinets wherever it finds convenient.

However not all of Brighton's fine residents are in support of the conservation groups, with one business owner saying, "Sometimes they do not have their priorities quite right." Others are claiming that the infrastructure is vital to bring Brighton into the 21st century.

Local businessman Richard Vahrman can't see what negative impact the BT cabinets will have on the local ambience saying, "On the Terrace there are many ugly things so I don't think the cabinet would make much difference." We can only assume Vahrman wasn't referring to the sunbathing locals.

As BT has been applying for planning permission for its broadband cabinets, it would suggest the conservationists' complaints should be taken up with the local council rather than the firm.

BT has said that it is working with local authorities to "minimise the visual impact" of the cabinets.

Frankly, when you've got beaches and a vibrant nightlife, Brighton's residents shouldn't have to worry about a few pesky cabinets cluttering up the place.

The holiday-makers and local yobs littering, tossing their chips and worse after chucking out time will continue taking care of that. µ