Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether she has made an assessment of the effectiveness of mobile network performance and coverage projections supplied by mobile network operators used in national reporting and Ofcom coverage data.

Ofcom is responsible for reporting on mobile network coverage across the UK and publishes this data through the Connected Nation Reports and through their consumer-facing Map Your Mobile tool. The coverage data used by Ofcom is based on predictive modelling of received signal strength. Ofcom has started to integrate mobile network performance data into the Map Your Mobile tool, drawing on crowdsourced data.

The Government recognises that reported coverage and performance may not always reflect individuals lived experience due to a range of reasons such as local network congestion and topography. Government continues to work closely with Ofcom to improve the accuracy and transparency of mobile coverage and performance reporting and reiterated this to Ofcom in the Statement of Strategic Priorities for telecommunications, the management of radio spectrum and postal services, which was designated 27 April 2026.