In many cases full fibre will be used to meet the requirements, but the legislation itself is technologically neutral.
Any suitable form of existing or future wired or wireless technology could be used by housebuilders, with the regulations only specifying that the connections are capable of providing download speeds of 1 gigabit per second.
Connection costs will be capped at £2,000 per home for developers and they will work together with network operators to connect developments to a network.
In addition, the Telecommunications Infrastructure (Leasehold Property) Act (TILPA), is now in force in England and Wales. This legislation makes it easier for broadband providers to gain access to install equipment in blocks of flats, when a faster connection is requested by a tenant.
The government estimates that an extra 2,100 residential buildings a year will be connected as a result.
Julia Lopez, the digital infrastructure minister, said, “Nothing should stop people from seizing the benefits of better broadband, whether it is an unresponsive landlord or a property developer’s failure to act.
“Thanks to our new laws, millions of renters will no longer be prevented from getting a broadband upgrade due to the silence of their landlord, and those moving into newly built homes can be confident they’ll have access to the fastest speeds available from the day they move in.”