Oral Answers to Questions

Perran Moon Excerpts

Thursday 12th November 2026 Commons Chamber

[Ian Murray]

The right hon. Gentleman is absolutely right to talk about the success of the shared rural network, but notspots still remain. Direct-to-device technology is one way of resolving those. It is a pragmatic solution for remote areas where terrestrial infrastructure is not viable. Lessons learned from the shared rural network programme demonstrate where this might offer a better solution, including for deployment costs, topography and local opposition to new infrastructure in some areas. We will continue to monitor this closely with the industry and ensure that all the tech is being made available to ensure these notspots disappear.

[Perran Moon (Camborne and Redruth) (Ind)]

Meur ras ha myttin da, Mr Speaker. With Cornish constituencies ranking on average 628th out of 650 for good-quality mobile coverage, the paucity of our digital connectivity affects businesses, residents and visitors alike. It is an exemplar of market failure. What are Ministers actually doing to correct this Cornish imbalance?

[Ian Murray]

The shared rural network programme has been a huge success, but as I said in answer to the initial question of the right hon. Member for Skipton and Ripon (Sir Julian Smith), there are still notspots and still some infrastructure problems across the country. We are working closely with the mobile networks to ensure that we can resolve those issues. New technology is coming forward all the time, including that direct-to-device satellite technology. I would be happy to meet my hon. Friend to go through the specific issues in his constituency and region to ensure that we have everything covered.

--- Later in debate ---

[Vicky Foxcroft]

I was delighted to go to Newbury races last week, and I would love the opportunity to come to Kempton Park. Please do write to me—I will try to ensure we get a date in the diary.

[Perran Moon (Camborne and Redruth) (Ind)]

With £7 out of every £8 of DCMS funding for museums and galleries going to just 15 national museums and galleries, and cultural investment per head in Cornwall being less than £10 compared with a national average of £15, may I ask for Ministers to meet Cornish MPs to discuss closing this cultural chasm, beyond suggestions of donations and lottery funding?

[Lisa Nandy]

The hon. Gentleman is absolutely right to say that parts of the country have historically been hugely underserved, and it was to correct that historical wrong that we established the Arts Everywhere fund. Arts and culture belong to all of us, and I would be delighted to set up a meeting with officials so that we can pursue this issue in Cornwall.