Press Release: State aid: Commission endorses public funding to bridge broadband communications gap in Wales

The European Commission on 1 June 2005 authorised, under EU state aid rules, a UK subsidy which aimed at bridging the 'digital divide' between areas of Wales that at the time had broadband communications and those that had not. The measure by the Welsh Assembly Government, to be co-financed by EU funds, was planned to bring first generation broadband to currently underserved regions of Wales allowing citizens to exploit the benefits of broadband technologies. The Commission concluded that the aid was not likely to cause undue distortion of competition within the Single Market and was therefore compatible with EC Treaty state aid rules (Article 87).