Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether the Government's policy to extend geographic mobile coverage to 95 per cent of the UK by the end of 2022 relates to 4G technology.
The Government wants the UK to have high-quality mobile connectivity where people live, work and travel. Mobile coverage has significantly improved over recent years, with 91% of the UK landmass having 4G coverage by at least one operator, up from 78% in 2017. Despite this progress, there remain areas where mobile connectivity must be improved. The Government has committed to extend geographic 4G coverage to 95% of the UK by 2022 and so address these ‘not spots’.
The Government welcomes the proposals set out in Ofcom’s consultation on awarding the 700 MHz and 3.6-3.8GHz spectrum bands to improve coverage.