Did you know that, in 2016, 87.9% of adults in the UK, equating to 45.9 million, used the internet within the space of 3 months. In 2017, 90% of households in Great Britain had internet access; a large increase from 2006 at 57%. These statistics, from the Office of National Statistics, show that many of us frequently use the internet. In fact, in 2017, London and the South-East were labeled as having ‘the highest levels of internet access in households across Great Britain’ at a whopping 94%. Comparing this to our neighbouring South-West region, who have an average household internet usage rate of 80 to 89%; it’s fair to say that the South-East has been blessed with the reliable gift of the Internet.
But is it a blessed gift? To some, the internet’s a curse because of the wifi and broadband that supplies it to us, not the platform itself. In 2017, 88% of adults in Great Britain used the internet weekly. Daily internet use has grown from 35% to 80% since 2006. Internet is at the heart of our lives. Currently, emailing has been quoted as ‘the most common internet activity’. Emailing itself has become crucial for communication, whether for leisure or for business. Online shopping has been growing rapidly in recent years due to its convenience. In an age of tougher exams, students see the internet as a lifeline for revision and guidance through the topics. For the new generation, the majority of entertainment can be found on the internet. Even when leaving the house, 78% of adults use portable, handheld devices like phones and tablets to access this luxury. But what if it suddenly became inaccessible?
This March, a family from Welling, Kent suffered immensely when their phone line went down. This in turn left them without broadband or wifi which supplies internet. For 9 days their lives were interrupted immensely by the lack of internet. A school student unable to revise for exams; a university student unable to finish studies; a mother unable to maintain her new, online business; and a father unable to work from home. Life halted by the force that drove it. The situation worsened for them due to the lack of support and response from their service providers and engineers, who constantly moved the repair date and failed to satisfy the urgencies of the family because, since they were being dealt with a service provider, they weren’t considered a priority to the engineers. When I asked the mother how badly it affected her life, she replied, ‘You could say we were hugely affected by losing the internet. You don’t realize how much you use the internet in the modern day until it’s taken from you i.e. children revising, communication, emailing. But we did manage to survive for 9 days!’
With cases like this across the UK, can we really say we can rely on the internet? As the internet continues to reach new highs, should we be taking a step back?
Liam Malcolm – Welling School
