The island birthplace of Christianity in Scotland being fast-tracked into the 21st century

The island of Iona - the cradle of Christianity in Scotland - has been in history books since St Columba and his 12 Irish followers founded a monastery in AD 563.

The Inner Hebridean island, a mile off the much larger island of Mull, is now being brought up to the 21st century by full fibre broadband being made available to every home and business on the island.

It comes after Mull in a series of islands benefitting from the Scottish Government’s Reaching 100 per cent (R100) programme, using engineering innovations to transmit fibre signals over long distances.

One Iona resident, who runs the small business Threads of Iona, said: “This is progress, and it’s essential that we have good contacts with the mainland and the world.”

The new digital network, run by Openreach, will offer some of the fastest, most reliable broadband in Europe to the 170 residents on the island, seasonal workers who swell the population in the summer and more than 100,000 pilgrims and tourists who visit each year.

Planners have been working with the National Trust for Scotland (NTS) which cares for the island; Historic Environment Scotland; and other specialists on critical archaeological and environmental assessments ahead of the build. As well as its ancient heritage, the island is a breeding ground for the rare and elusive corncrake.

The fibre cables will follow existing 19th and 20th-century roads leading north from the main village of Baile Mòr and through the Iona Conservation Area to provide telecoms links to farms in the northern, southern and western extents of the island.

The build will pass close to three historic monuments - Iona Nunnery, Maclean’s Cross and the iconic Iona Abbey – and through areas where there’s high potential for survival of archaeological remains from the Prehistoric, early Medieval and Medieval periods.

Harrie Burney, property manager for the NTS, said: “Iona is a pretty special place in terms of the history of Scotland. A lot of people know Iona for the Abbey and St Columba but it also has a history that goes a lot further back. It’s also vital that we protect the nature on the island, with the works scheduled to manage this carefully.

“Our aim is to care for, protect, and share this special place for the benefit of everyone. We’re working with the engineers to put archaeological monitoring in place and make sure we’re not going to cause any disturbance, but there’s also an opportunity to uncover new finds along the way.

“Connectivity on Iona is a real issue and something that’s very important to the population here. There's been a real buzz around the connectivity improving, so this project will make a huge difference.”

Scottish Government business minister, Richard Lochhead, said 40 islands in total will benefit from R100.

He said: “High quality digital infrastructure is crucial to everyday life, and economic growth – particularly for Scotland’s rural and island communities – which is why we are rapidly accelerating access to full fibre broadband for those who need it most.”

Fraser Rowberry, Openreach chief engineer for Scotland, said: “Iona residents couldn’t have given us a warmer welcome. Young islanders who risk missing some mainland schooling each winter, seasonal workers and businesses are all overjoyed at the prospect of better broadband.”