Last month, the then culture secretary Jeremy Hunt announced plans for the UK to provide the fastest broadband of any major European country by 2015, controversially prioritising ‘ultrafast’ speed over broadband access. 

A survey of over 1,100 Brits carried out by thinkbroadband.com found that only five per cent of consumers believe the government will deliver on their broadband promises for 2015, with the majority lacking faith in the ambitious plans.

But while three quarters of the respondents support Jeremy Hunt’s vision of superfast broadband for Britain, almost 90% believe his goal is unlikely to be achieved with the current Broadband Delivery UK projects in place.

Andrew Ferguson, editor of thinkbroadband.com, said: “The results illustrate that broadband users seek higher speeds but are not optimistic, with confidence in the government’s plans at an all-time low.

“The new culture secretary should take note of this and ensure they keep on track with the ambitious plans or risk lowering public confidence even further.”

The survey also revealed that consumers feel left in the dark over plans for broadband in their local area with 50% claiming their council has no visible broadband plan. A further 26% said they found it difficult to obtain information about the broadband plan provided by their local authority.

Ferguson added: “Jeremy Hunt gave the clearest goal for UK broadband in his last few days at the Department of Culture, Media and Support.

“However, with the recent news of his departure, the question now is whether his replacement, Maria Miller, will support his bold goal.

“With current UK broadband speeds lagging behind the rest of Europe, the government is tasked with propelling the UK from the bottom of the pile to the top of the broadband charts.”