Consultations will be run in due course, to facilitate roll-out of 4G and 5G.
Background: Improving mobile coverage in the UK has been a long-standing goal, particularly outside cities and on roads and railways; so much so, that successive governments in recent years have committed to achieve improvements. On their part, operators have repeatedly pointed out that planning needs to improve, so that they can have easier access to land and infrastructure to install equipment.
This week’s announcement: During the 5G World Conference, as part of the London Tech Week, the Digital Secretary announced that the Government will consult on proposals to simplify planning processes in England to both support the further roll-out of 4G and aid the faster introduction of 5G. This is part of the Government’s long-term strategy for meeting its digital connectivity targets, outlined in the Future Telecoms Infrastructure Review of 2018. The plans involve tackling barriers to deployment and creating the right conditions for network investment.
More detail to come: At the moment, the Government is yet to release details of the consultation it intends to hold. On the same day, the Government also announced more investment in 5G testbed and trials (£40m), and new spectrum made available by the Ministry of Defence (168MHz) to facilitate network deployment.
