More than 60,000 rural homes and businesses across Yorkshire and Lincolnshire have now been connected to ultra-fast broadband under the government-funded Project Gigabit scheme. The rollout matters because it targets areas the commercial market has largely bypassed, as providers often deem rural connections too costly or unprofitable to install, leaving many households and firms with slower speeds than their urban counterparts.

Villages including Winterton, Fosdyke, Sessay and Linton-on-Ouse are among the latest to benefit, alongside areas around Barnsley, Huddersfield, Hull, Bradford, York, Boston and Wisbech. Connections so far total 12,800 properties in East Yorkshire, 14,600 in North Yorkshire, 7,500 in South Yorkshire, 10,700 in West Yorkshire, 3,000 in York and 11,400 in Lincolnshire, with the government aiming to connect 123,000 premises across the region in total and 99% of UK premises by 2032. Hull-based firm Quickline holds the delivery contract, backed by roughly £300m in public funding, and the project has also created 130 apprenticeship places.