in response to today’s speech from the Leader of the Opposition, Jeremy Corbyn, where he suggested that ISPs should be subject to a levy to fund a digital licence fee, https://labour.org.uk/press/full-text-jeremy-corbyns-2018-alternative-mactaggart-lecture/, ISPA said:
Today’s call by the Leader of the Opposition, Jeremy Corbyn, to impose a levy on Internet Service Providers to help fund a ‘digital licence fee’ runs the risk of undermining broadband investment and could lead to increased prices for all consumers. ISPA members are currently investing billions to help deliver the next generation broadband infrastructure and services that are essential to the UK’s economy and society – a digital levy could divert resources away from this investment and slow down broadband rollout. We note that this is a draft policy idea for discussion, so it is important to consider at this early stage the impact of imposing a levy on ISPs who are delivering what the Labour Digital team calls a “critical national infrastructure priority”.