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After the criticisms that Lord Carter’s Digital Britain report received, Parliament has announced the setting up of an inquiry commission to investigate several aspects of the proposals. The report had been widely criticized for being impractical and poorly thought out.

The investigation is likely to cover several aspects of the report, which includes claims of telecom companies providing high-speed broadband connectivity and then faltering on their promises. www.parliament.uk has described the inquiry as being a means to explore how best the benefits of the digital revolution could be maximized.

Some of the aspects include the viability of a 2Mbps universal access speed by 2012, and the taxing of copper lines to fund next generation connectivity. This is apart from investigating the claims of internet service providers’ advertising with regards to actual speed of connectivity being offered to customers - click here for a broadband comparison of ISP’s - However, one of the key issues being left out is that of upload speeds, which find no mention in the scope of the inquiry.

The conclusions of the committee are not likely to be out immediately as Parliament continues to gather evidence till the end of September. However, it is widely hoped that the findings will once and for all lay to rest the issue of whether the report’s recommendation can be implemented in a viable manner.