Third of the UK doesn’t get good mobile internet

A THIRD of the UK does not get good 4G mobile phone coverage from all networks – particularly those living in rural areas.

As the nation’s major phone companies roll out faster 5G services in major cities and towns, it seems large parts of the country have been left behind.

The details are revealed in a report from telecoms regulator Ofcom, which assesses the state and reach of the nation’s mobile and broadband services.

It said that in today’s society, being able to make calls and get online on the move is crucial to people’s personal and working lives. But it said just 66 per cent of UK gets good 4G reception from all four networks. However, 91 per cent of the country can get reliable 4G from at least one operator.

The lack of comprehensive coverage from all the networks – EE, Vodafone, O2 and Three – means using a smartphone to access the internet is something of a lottery. Broadband and mobile internet services played a major part in policy promises made during the general election.

The Government has promised to roll out ‘gigabit-capable broadband’ – a quicker, more reliable connection – across the country, but has not announced a target date to achieve this.

Ofcom’s annual Connected

Nations report said as things stand, around half of homes (53 per cent) can get ‘ultrafast’ broadband, offering download speeds of at least 300 Mbit/s.

Just 10 per cent of all homes – around three million – get full fibre broadband, with download speeds of up to one gigabit per second (1 Gbit/s).

Downloading a four minute song would take around seven seconds with ‘ultrafast’ broadband and less than a second using full fibre. Ofcom will publish plans to promote further investment in fibre networks – including in rural areas – to meet Government objectives.

Caroline Normand of consumer group Which? said the ‘continuing dire state of 4G coverage across the country is a huge concern and risks leaving many consumers behind’, despite progress in broadband.

Strategy and research group director at Ofcom, Yih-Choung Teh, said: ‘This year we’ve seen full-fibre broadband grow at its fastest ever rate, and all four mobile networks launch 5G. But despite this good progress, there is more to do to bring all parts of the country up to speed – particularly rural areas.’

He said an industry project announced in October would boost mobile internet coverage. Operators will introduce a ‘shared rural network’, which could see high-quality 4G reach 95 per cent of the UK by 2025, as companies share their existing masts and invest in new sites.

‘Continuing dire state of 4G’