A £5 billion programme to deliver full-fibre broadband connections to hard-to-reach areas should cure most of the problems experienced in the remoter parts of West Somerset, said local MP Ian Liddell-Grainger.

But, Mr Liddell-Grainger urged constituents to get in touch with him if they had any concerns or encountered problems with the new service.

Project Gigabit is designed to resolve most of the difficulties associated with delivering broadband to rural areas, problems which have left huge swathes of rural Britain struggling with poor connectivity.

A report just released by the Federation of Small Businesses suggested a third of rural enterprises regularly experienced internet problems, 14 per cent said it affected their ability to contact customers, and five per cent reported they were losing sales as a result.

The latest Government initiative aims to deliver gigabit-capable full-fibre connections with internet speeds more than 30 times faster than superfast broadband.

Mr Liddell-Grainger said families and businesses in areas such as Exmoor would inevitably be delighted by the news.

He said: “It means they will finally be emerging from the dark ages and joining the 21st century.

“But I have seen many projects like this rolled out and I am well aware there can be discrepancies between what is promised and what is delivered.

“The Government does appear to be taking this issue seriously, which is encouraging, but that does not mean the process will be trouble-free.

“And I would urge anybody who does experience any kind of problem to get in touch with me immediately.”