Recommendations & Conclusions
8 items
5
Conclusion
Thirty-Fifth Report - Supporting mobile…
Acknowledged
The Department lacks up to date information to track progress on whether the Shared Rural Network programme will meet its targets for increasing connectivity on roads and premises. In addition to the overall target to increase 4G coverage to 95% of the UK landmass, the Department also aims to provide …
Read more
The Department lacks up to date information to track progress on whether the Shared Rural Network programme will meet its targets for increasing connectivity on roads and premises. In addition to the overall target to increase 4G coverage to 95% of the UK landmass, the Department also aims to provide 280,000 additional premises and 16,000 kilometres of roads with 4G coverage through the Shared Rural Network programme. However, the Department is unclear on how many premises and roads had gained 4G connectivity so far and is still in discussions with the mobile network operators about getting the information it needs to track progress against these targets. Furthermore, it says that Ofcom will not assess whether the mobile network operators have met these targets until 2027. Despite not being able to confirm what progress has been made do far, based on information BDUK has received to date from the mobile network operators, the Department says it is confident that it will meet the roads and premises targets. Recommendation 5: The Department should work with Ofcom and the mobile network operators to ensure that it can report publicly on progress against its targets for increasing 4G connectivity on roads and premises.
Show less
Government response AI summary
The government agrees and states BDUK is committed to working with Ofcom and MNOs to ensure mobile coverage data continues to be published. BDUK is engaging with Ofcom to consider publishing more granular figures in upcoming statistical updates and exploring ways to track roads and …
Read full response →
HM Treasury
7
Recommendation
Thirty-Fifth Report - Supporting mobile…
Acknowledged
The Department’s plans for supporting investment in 5G infrastructure are undeveloped and it has not articulated what it has achieved from taxpayers’ 8 Supporting mobile connectivity investment to date. Since 2017, the Department has committed over £500 million to determine how 5G technology could be used by consumers and businesses …
Read more
The Department’s plans for supporting investment in 5G infrastructure are undeveloped and it has not articulated what it has achieved from taxpayers’ 8 Supporting mobile connectivity investment to date. Since 2017, the Department has committed over £500 million to determine how 5G technology could be used by consumers and businesses in the UK, to promote investment in 5G, and for research into more advanced technologies. The Department has published information on the outcomes of its spending programmes but has not brought information together to make it clear what it has achieved to date. Nor does the Department currently plan to directly support the roll-out of 5G infrastructure in the same way as it has done for 4G. There have been calls for the Government to act quickly to support 5G deployment in areas where the market is unwilling to deliver, but the Department is waiting to see how willing the mobile network operators are to invest and how far the commercial roll-out progresses before deciding if government investment is needed. It has set an ambition for standalone 5G to be available in all populated areas by 2030, but has not yet defined all populated areas or the level of 5G performance it considers the UK needs. Recommendation 7: The Department should set out more clearly what it has achieved from its investment to date in 5G, as well as setting more meaningful and measurable targets for assessing its progress in supporting the roll-out of standalone 5G mobile coverage. Supporting mobile connectivity 9 1 Delivering the Shared Rural Network programme
Show less
Government response AI summary
The government agrees but states it has set an "ambition" for 5G coverage, not a specific target, and monitors this via Ofcom's reports. It notes previous 5G Testbeds and Trials programme outcomes were evaluated in 2023 and commits to providing evaluations of current programmes (Open …
Read full response →
HM Treasury
24
Recommendation
Thirty-Fifth Report - Supporting mobile…
Acknowledged
We asked the Department how it will know whether it has achieved its premises and roads targets and whether there was a risk of getting to the end of 2025 without being able to assess progress.45 The Department told us that it would like better visibility of its progress against …
Read more
We asked the Department how it will know whether it has achieved its premises and roads targets and whether there was a risk of getting to the end of 2025 without being able to assess progress.45 The Department told us that it would like better visibility of its progress against these targets, including more detailed coverage forecasts, and it is speaking with the mobile network operators about getting the necessary information.46 It described the challenge of trying to get the mobile network operators to share commercially sensitive data about their network’s coverage. The Department said it would like the mobile network operators to share the data with it privately.47
Show less
Government response AI summary
The government agrees and commits to working with Ofcom and MNOs to ensure mobile coverage data, including for roads and premises, is published and expanded, and will engage to consider tracking methods by January 2027, with a target implementation date of January 2025.
Read full response →
HM Treasury
25
Conclusion
Thirty-Fifth Report - Supporting mobile…
Acknowledged
The Department told us that it does have some numbers on the increased coverage of roads and premises, but that they are unverified and it is not confident in them.48 The Department estimates that, since the start of the programme, coverage on roads has improved by about 11 percentage points. …
Read more
The Department told us that it does have some numbers on the increased coverage of roads and premises, but that they are unverified and it is not confident in them.48 The Department estimates that, since the start of the programme, coverage on roads has improved by about 11 percentage points. However, the Department told us it is not clear to what extent this increase in road coverage is due to the programme.49
Show less
Government response AI summary
The government agrees and states it will work with Ofcom and MNOs to ensure mobile coverage data, including for roads and premises, continues to be published and expanded, and will engage with Ofcom to consider publishing more granular figures and tracking methods by January 2027.
Read full response →
HM Treasury
27
Conclusion
Thirty-Fifth Report - Supporting mobile…
Acknowledged
Connectivity along major rail routes remains poor. Passengers can struggle to make calls, stream videos or work online. The Department told us that improving connectivity on railways is challenging. It explained that it is hard for the signal to penetrate through tunnels, deep cuttings and safety glass on modern trains. …
Read more
Connectivity along major rail routes remains poor. Passengers can struggle to make calls, stream videos or work online. The Department told us that improving connectivity on railways is challenging. It explained that it is hard for the signal to penetrate through tunnels, deep cuttings and safety glass on modern trains. According to the Department, improving coverage on trains would be expensive and require complex infrastructure along the side of the track, which, it described, as more difficult than improving coverage on roads. The Department further explained that there is a weak commercial case for individual mobile network operators to invest in railway coverage, due to the high costs for infrastructure and marginal commercial benefits.53
Show less
Government response AI summary
The government acknowledges the conclusion about poor rail connectivity and associated challenges, outlining plans with Ofcom to report on rail coverage and a DfT study to establish baseline data by early 2025.
Read full response →
HM Treasury
32
Conclusion
Thirty-Fifth Report - Supporting mobile…
Acknowledged
While we could see the logic of demonstrating the benefits of 5G, the sums involved have been large, and we were concerned that commercial operators could have worked out themselves what benefits they could get from standalone 5G without government intervention.62 We asked the Department when it expected to see …
Read more
While we could see the logic of demonstrating the benefits of 5G, the sums involved have been large, and we were concerned that commercial operators could have worked out themselves what benefits they could get from standalone 5G without government intervention.62 We asked the Department when it expected to see a dividend from its investment. The Department said that it was about to hit the tipping point at which commercial operators will pick up on the Government’s research and start spending their own money.63 Deployment of 5G infrastructure
Show less
Government response AI summary
The government highlights that standalone 5G deployment is commercially funded, while referencing existing initiatives such as the Wireless Infrastructure Strategy and monitoring progress via Ofcom data. It mentions past 5G Testbeds and Trials and ongoing Open Networks and 5G Innovation Regions, with an evaluation due …
Read full response →
HM Treasury
33
Recommendation
Thirty-Fifth Report - Supporting mobile…
Acknowledged
The mobile service company Ericsson wrote to us about the UK National Infrastructure Commission (NIC) Second National Infrastructure Assessment which stated that the government should prepare to act fast to support 5G deployment in areas where the market is unwilling to deliver.64 The Department told us it is reluctant to …
Read more
The mobile service company Ericsson wrote to us about the UK National Infrastructure Commission (NIC) Second National Infrastructure Assessment which stated that the government should prepare to act fast to support 5G deployment in areas where the market is unwilling to deliver.64 The Department told us it is reluctant to spend public money on building infrastructure that the private sector would build for itself “within 56 C&AG’s Report, paras 15, 4.3, footnote 8 57 Qq 53–54, 57 58 Q 62; C&AG’s Report, para 15 59 Qq 17, 52, 55; C&AG’s Report, para 4.4 60 C&AG’s Report, para 15 61 Qq 52–53, 61 62 Q 56 63 Q 58 64 Ericsson (SMC0006) 18 Supporting mobile connectivity a reasonable timeframe”. It told us that its policy is that the roll-out of infrastructure should be commercially-led and that it currently has no plans to directly support 5G roll-out in the same way as it did for 4G. It was waiting to see how willing the mobile network operators are to invest and how far the commercial roll-out gets before deciding if government investment is needed.65
Show less
Government response AI summary
The government reaffirms its commercially-led approach to 5G deployment without subsidy, stating it monitors progress, implements demand/supply interventions, and continues to work with industry to understand future intervention needs. It highlights ongoing programmes like Open Networks and 5G Innovation Regions.
Read full response →
HM Treasury
34
Conclusion
Thirty-Fifth Report - Supporting mobile…
Acknowledged
The Department has stated that it wants to see standalone 5G in all populated areas by 2030.66 Although non-standalone 5G is more widely available, the Department thinks it unlikely to meet the UK’s future connectivity needs. The Department has yet to define what it means by populated areas or to …
Read more
The Department has stated that it wants to see standalone 5G in all populated areas by 2030.66 Although non-standalone 5G is more widely available, the Department thinks it unlikely to meet the UK’s future connectivity needs. The Department has yet to define what it means by populated areas or to set out the level of performance needed.67 We asked the Department about what this target would look like in practice, in terms of landmass coverage, and how close it was to meeting it. The Department responded that the vision for 5G in 2030 is not a target but an ambition as, without providing funding, it has no control over the level of 5G coverage achieved.68 65 Qq 17, 52, 61 66 C&AG’s Report, para 15 67 Q 61; C&AG’s Report, paras 4.6, 4.7 68 Q 63 Supporting mobile connectivity 19
Show less
Government response AI summary
The government acknowledges the committee's observation, reiterating that standalone 5G deployment is an ambition, not a target due to commercial funding, and states it monitors progress via Ofcom's reports and will evaluate ongoing programs by 2025.
Read full response →
HM Treasury