Friday
26
April
Mobile phone coverage issues need sorting - AM
27/12/2019 @ 12:02
Improved mobile phone coverage and 4G reception needs to be addressed by telephone operators, according to Montgomeryshire AM, Russell George.
His comments comes as residents in Newtown and other parts of north Powys have complained that reception from EE has reduced and in some cases disappeared completely.
According to the AM, one mobile operator is able to provide voice coverage to 96 per cent of Montgomeryshire, while the four combined operators are only reaching 68 per cent of the area.
He said: "The availability of 4G services from at least one operator is 87% and 4G availability from all four operators drops to 49%.
"Nevertheless, mobile coverage in Montgomeryshire continues to lag behind the Wales and UK average and I have ongoing discussions with all mobile providers, highlighting areas where there is no mobile signal at all.
"My most recent discussions have been with the mobile operator EE. EE customers across the area, who once had good signal, are now finding that they have poor or no service at all."
He added: "While operators must bear some of the burden of tackling some of the hardest valleys and communities to reach, public sector intervention, in terms of both policy change and political support, will be needed.
"The Welsh Government's Mobile Action Plan, which is now three years old, has been proven to be little more than a set of warm words rather than concrete commitments, and unfortunately, the drive behind that plan seems to have dissipated with none of the proposals yet implemented in any meaningful way.
"This political inertia in Wales when it comes to creating the right regulatory, political and commercial conditions necessary for mobile operators to invest in digital connectivity is putting Mid Wales at a further disadvantage.
"So, in 2020 I will continue to press the Welsh Government to use the devolved policy levers at their disposal and commit to a public date by which these much needed reforms will be delivered so that Mid Wales doesn't fall further behind."
His comments comes as residents in Newtown and other parts of north Powys have complained that reception from EE has reduced and in some cases disappeared completely.
According to the AM, one mobile operator is able to provide voice coverage to 96 per cent of Montgomeryshire, while the four combined operators are only reaching 68 per cent of the area.He said: "The availability of 4G services from at least one operator is 87% and 4G availability from all four operators drops to 49%.
"Nevertheless, mobile coverage in Montgomeryshire continues to lag behind the Wales and UK average and I have ongoing discussions with all mobile providers, highlighting areas where there is no mobile signal at all.
"My most recent discussions have been with the mobile operator EE. EE customers across the area, who once had good signal, are now finding that they have poor or no service at all."
He added: "While operators must bear some of the burden of tackling some of the hardest valleys and communities to reach, public sector intervention, in terms of both policy change and political support, will be needed.
"The Welsh Government's Mobile Action Plan, which is now three years old, has been proven to be little more than a set of warm words rather than concrete commitments, and unfortunately, the drive behind that plan seems to have dissipated with none of the proposals yet implemented in any meaningful way.
"This political inertia in Wales when it comes to creating the right regulatory, political and commercial conditions necessary for mobile operators to invest in digital connectivity is putting Mid Wales at a further disadvantage.
"So, in 2020 I will continue to press the Welsh Government to use the devolved policy levers at their disposal and commit to a public date by which these much needed reforms will be delivered so that Mid Wales doesn't fall further behind."
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