Asked by: Paul Davies (Labour - Colne Valley)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure that people in Colne Valley constituency can access a 5G signal by 2030.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Ofcom reports that basic (non-standalone) 5G is already available outside 83% of premises across the Colne Valley constituency from at least one mobile operator.
But in order to realise the full economic and social benefits of 5G, our ambition is for all populated areas, including those in the Colne Valley, to have higher-quality standalone 5G by 2030.
We work closely with the mobile industry and are committed to ensuring we have the right policy and regulatory framework to support investment and competition in the market. As part of this work, the Government intends to reform the planning system to make it easier to build digital infrastructure.
Asked by: Paul Davies (Labour - Colne Valley)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps he is taking to help improve broadband connections in Colne Valley constituency.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
According to the independent website ThinkBroadband.com, almost 98% of premises in the Colne Valley constituency have access to superfast broadband speeds (>=30 Mbps) and over 85% can access a gigabit-capable (>1000 Mbps) connection.
To extend gigabit-capable coverage further, Quickline is delivering a £60 million contract under Project Gigabit, to bring gigabit-capable broadband to around 28,000 premises across West Yorkshire and parts of North Yorkshire that would otherwise miss out, including in Colne Valley.
Asked by: Paul Davies (Labour - Colne Valley)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what discussions he has had with Ofcom on the adequacy of its reporting on the quality of phone signals for consumers.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Far too often the data published by Ofcom does not match consumers’ experience of using mobile networks. I wrote to Ofcom in August, asking them to set out steps to improve their mobile coverage reporting. I have also met with the regulator to discuss the concerns raised in my letter, and Ofcom has agreed to explore what steps could reasonably be taken to improve the data.
Asked by: Paul Davies (Labour - Colne Valley)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if he will make an assessment with Cabinet colleagues of the potential impact of levels of (a) broadband and (b) mobile coverage in rural areas on mental health.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Everyone needs the right access, skills, support and confidence to participate in a modern digital society. Government recognises that digital inclusion can have a positive impact on social wellbeing, increasing social connectivity and enabling access to mental health resources, and is committed to improving broadband and mobile access in rural areas.
Project Gigabit is delivering gigabit capable connectivity for millions of rural homes and the Shared Rural Network is improving 4G coverage in rural areas. For 5G, our ambition is for all populated areas, including rural areas, to have high-quality standalone 5G by 2030.