Eliminating Digital Poverty in the UK

Highlights/Executive summary

This policy brief offers recommendations for policymakers who work toward eliminating digital poverty in the UK. Digital exclusion affects people’s opportunities to use their human rights and has serious avoidable economic, social, and personal costs. The UK should therefore recognise a right to Internet access, according to which:

• Everyone should have guaranteed access to a digital end device.
• Funding is provided for those who cannot afford digital data services.
• Everyone has the opportunity to acquire basic digital skills.

Who is this for?

This policy brief is aimed at UK policymakers who want to improve economic growth, employment, public health, educational attainment, and social mobility.

Introduction

Lack of Internet access and digital skills have significant avoidable consequences for the UK’s economy and society. 7% of UK citizens have no home Internet access and 2.4 million UK households find it difficult to afford their fixed broadband service. 2.4 million people are still unable to go online due to a lack of kills while an estimated 90% of open jobs are now only advertised online. Moreover, 5 million workers will be under-skilled in basic digital skills by 2030. This digital divide generates costs for society. Digital skills shortages are estimated to cost the UK economy £63 billion each year. Those disadvantaged by digital exclusion require more public support and are less able to contribute productively to the economy and society. In todays digitalised society individuals can only function satisfactorily if they have access to the Internet. There should be a right to Internet access in the UK. This will not only ensure that people have adequate opportunities to exercise their human rights. It will also benefit society and economic growth overall.

Recommendations

1. Provide digital devices:

• Digital exclusion leads to exclusion from the job market as an estimated 90% of open jobs are now only advertised online (House of Lords 2023: 15).
• Digital exclusion affects educational attainment as pupils can find resources (e.g. BBC Bitesize) online that help them study and that enable their parents to support their learning.
• Government action to distribute 1 million laptops and tablets to schools to enable remote learning during the pandemic in 2020 showed that many cannot afford digital devices needed for meaningful Internet access. Device poverty is a constant issue and not limited to emergency situations like the COVID-19 pandemic.

How? Government should support charities such as the Good Things Foundation whose National Device Bank provides free refurbished digital devices to those who need them.

Like the former US FCC’s Affordable Connectivity Program (FCC 2024), government should provide eligible households with a one-time discount to purchase a laptop, desktop computer, or tablet.

2. Fund digital data services:

• 7% of citizens over 16 had no home Internet access (Ofcom 2023: 14).
• 1 million people in the UK are estimated to have cut back or cancelled internet packages in the past year due to affordability issues (House of Lords 2023: 6).
• 4 million UK households found it difficult to afford their fixed broadband service in 2023 (Ofcom 2023: 15).
• Internet access has been identified by medical researchers as a ‘super-determinant of health’ and digital exclusion consequently as ‘public health issue’: Internet access is now required for accessing medical services, health-related and other information, education, social participation, and income. These all affect health (Reglitz 2024).
• Those too poor to afford Internet access have one less crucial opportunity to advance their position in society.

How? Social tariffs for Internet services are still unaffordable for the poorest in society. Government should adopt a financial support scheme akin to the US FCC’s Affordable Connectivity Program that provided discounts for Internet services for eligible households thereby effectively making these services free for them.

3. Train basic digital skills:

• Digital skills shortages cost the UK economy approximately £63 billion each year. (House of Lords 2023: 6).
• 4 million UK citizens cannot fulfil basic digital tasks and many more are digitally under-skilled. (House of Lords 2023: 6).
• 5 million workers will be under-skilled in basic digital skills by 2030 (House of Lords 2023: 6).

How? Government should provide resources for consistently implementing its Essential Digital Skills Framework in schools but also in public libraries, jobcentres, and further education.

Government should expand its support for initiatives such as the Good Things Foundation’s Future Digital Inclusion programme and partner with other digital inclusion charities such as Citizens Online.

4. Recognize a right to Internet Access:

• Digital exclusion is first and foremost a rights issue because digital poverty and exclusion result in those affected having inadequate opportunities to enjoy and make use their human rights e.g. rights to healthcare, education, work, cultural participation (Reglitz 2024).
• People must have adequate opportunities to enjoy their rights for these to be useful to them. Mere passive respect for rights is insufficient: free school education and meals, NHS services, and postal votes are all public services in recognition of this fact.

How? Claimable public support for Internet access now is another necessity for adequate opportunities to enjoy human rights. A right to Internet access offers the needed protection against digital poverty and a credible strategy to prevent digital exclusion.

Key Insights/Takeaways

• Recognise a right to Internet access as an effective strategy against digital poverty and exclusion.
• Those without Internet access are significantly limited in their opportunities to exercise and enjoy their human rights.
• Internet access has several dimensions including requirements in terms of affordable devices, affordable data services, and basic digital skills.
• The most disadvantaged in society will require public support with respect to most of these dimensions of access.
• Government should provide direct support and partner with charities to guarantee that all citizens have everything needed to access the Internet.

Guaranteeing Internet access involves upfront costs that pay off in the long run.

• Internet access leads to better outcomes in terms of education, health, economic and social participation, and social mobility.
• Better outcomes in terms of education, health, economic and social participation, and social mobility reduce the need for public support for disadvantaged citizens.
• Better outcomes in terms of education, health, economic and social participation, and social mobility promote economic participation and growth thereby benefitting society overall.

Further readings and references

• Merten Reglitz. 2024. Free Internet Access as a Human Right (Cambridge University Press).
• House of Lords. 2023. The Government has “No Credible Strategy” to Tackle Digital Exclusion.
• 2023. Online Nation – 2023 Report.
• 2024. Affordable Connectivity Program.

Contact:

Dr Merten Reglitz/ Associate Professor/ Department of Philosophy/ University of Birmingham /

m.reglitz@bham.ac.uk.