The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) says its members located in rural areas are losing out because of a “two-speed digital economy”.

The small business lobby asked its members if they were satisfied with the quality of their broadband internet connections.

It found just under half of rural firms were unhappy compared with only 28% of small firms located in towns and cities.

It concluded that many rural areas are living in a “digital slow-lane”, adding that it threatened growth in the £400 billion rural economy.

Broadband reliability, as well as upload and download times were the main bones of contention for rural firms.

The FSB pointed out the “satisfaction gap” between rural and urban areas is currently running at about 50%.

Mike Cherry, national policy chairman for the FSB, said: “A reliable connection is now viewed as a key business requirement by 94% of small UK businesses, yet continued poor connectivity in rural areas represents a huge missed opportunity for economic growth in many parts of the country.

“These gaps and weaknesses need to be addressed as a matter of priority with the minimum of 10 Mbps to all business premises by 2018/19, and a pledge to deliver minimum speeds of 100Mbps to all by 2030."