Culture Secretary Sajid Javid has announced that one million homes and businesses now have access to superfast broadband as part of the government's Broadband Delivery UK (BDUK) project.
The programme is currently adding up to 40,000 new connections to its roster each week, but this is increasing every seven days, meaning it will hit its target of 95 per cent of homes covered by the service by 2017.
The rollout will not only benefit businesses and residents of the UK, but the government says the initiative will also provide an additional 56,000 jobs as well as boosting rural economies by 275 million every month by 2024.
Javid said: "[Superfast broadband] is totally transforming the way we live and work. You can download feature length films faster, chatting online with family and friends around the world using VOIP is more reliable and households can go online simultaneously without the connection slowing down or dropping out.
"For Businesses, superfast speeds are boosting profits through increased sales, reduced overheads and accessing markets abroad for the first time."
The government has set aside 1.7 billion for the superfast broadband rollout across the UK, which specifically focuses on getting speedy connectivity to rural areas that may not have had a connection above 3Mbps previously.
BT has won all the contracts to install superfast broadband in 44 areas. Projects are currently underway in eight locations across the country, including the Isles of Scilly and the Outer Hebrides.
Gavin Patterson, CEO of BT, said: "Getting fibre to rural areas is hard, and often complex, work but we are making great progress. Our engineers are busy, from Hampshire to the Highlands, connecting homes and businesses whatever the challenge. We are laying undersea cables to the Outer Hebrides, reaching remote villages in Wales and transforming rural areas across England."
