A BORDERS town has made the top 20 of locations in Scotland with the best ‘ultrafast’ broadband coverage, it has emerged.

Telecom company Openreach, which has published a new survey, says “more than a million homes and businesses can now access ultrafast, full-fibre broadband on the company’s Scottish digital network”.

Topping the list is the village of  Lundin Links in Fife, with Tranent in East Lothian in second place.

But in a highly respectful 12th place is Peebles with a spokesperson for Openreach, a wholly owned subsidiary of BT Group, saying: “While cities are often perceived to have the best coverage, small towns dominate Openreach’s list of hotspots with the highest levels of fibre.

“Lundin Links, Fife, has the highest coverage in the whole of Scotland, with more than nine out of 10 properties able to upgrade to ultrafast broadband. Tranent, on the other side of the Forth, is a fraction behind and the West Lothian village of Fauldhouse is third.”

Openreach noted it is also working with the Scottish and UK governments, through the 'Reaching 100 per cent' (R100) programme and voucher schemes, to take fibre to Scotland’s “most rural areas and hardest-to-reach properties”.

Scottish Government innovation minister Richard Lochhead said: “This is an important milestone in the drive to ensure more homes and businesses across Scotland benefit from full-fibre broadband, improving vital connectivity.

“We are working with Openreach to roll out future-proofed digital infrastructure to our rural towns and villages and this ‘Reaching 100 per cent’ build, alongside Openreach’s commercial network, will underpin economic growth and enhance communities across Scotland for decades to come.”