Orange to host Connected Britain debate in London next month

Mobile broadband provider Orange has announced today that it will host a connected Britain debate to allow open discussion on how life in Britain will be changed by the next generations of connection technology.

Gone are the days of land-line phones and dial-up internet only - now a wealth of devices and a wealth of ways to connect those devices mean that we have more options than ever before to work and live the way that we want to; potentially reducing commutes and improving working flexibility. The debate, which will take place at the London Transport Museum on February 3, will give a panel of commentators the chance to discuss what this means for life in Britain.

Chairing the debate will be BBC presenter, journalist and economist Evan Davis. Joining him on the panel will be Robert Ainger from Orange, writer and talking head Janet Street-Porter, and futurologist James Bellini. After the debate has taken place, the audience will have the opportunity to address questions to the panel - and Orange is also calling for people to submit questions via its Connected Britain website.

The debate is the next step in Orange's 'Connected Britain' project, which revealed results of a study last year showing how the UK population could shift if universal fast broadband access meant that remote working became more feasible for everyone. As well as showing that most of us would choose to live somewhere else if we could, the study of over 3,000 British office workers also revealed that British businesses could save as much as £31 billion if employees were allowed to work more flexibly.