A diet of full fibre and 5G will help to sustain UK’S digital dominance
The UK’S digital landscape has undergone a remarkable transformation in recent years. We’ve made superfast broadband available to 95pc of UK homes and businesses, and we are reaching thousands more every week. However, we now need to think about the customers of the future and what connectivity they will expect. Our consumption of data is growing daily, and it is clear that the UK will need full fibre and 5G if we are to remain ahead internationally and unleash the full potential of the digital economy.
That is why the Government has published the UK’S first national, long-term strategy for digital connectivity. Our Future Telecoms Infrastructure review is a radical new blueprint. It sets out how we will deliver our ambitious targets to take full-fibre broadband to 15m households by 2025 and nationwide coverage by 2033. It also explains how we will make a reality of our ambition to be a world leader in 5G, with a target for the majority of the country to have a 5G signal by 2027.
At its heart is an acknowledgement of the need for stable, investmentfriendly regulation to incentivise commercial roll-out of full fibre and 5G. The review also sets out a series of important steps that will make that investment even more compelling – making full-fibre broadband mandatory for all new builds, a nationwide switchover from outdated copper lines, prioritising the most rural areas for funding, and an overhaul of wayleave rules that restrict access to companies trying to install digital infrastructure.
We need to create the right conditions for the private sector to make landmark investments. Commercial firms are increasingly realising that full fibre and 5G investments are worth making. The Government’s approach will accelerate this commercial interest in full fibre. We believe the market will secure coverage for around 80pc of the country. However, our challenge as a government is to make sure that all our citizens have the opportunity to reap the benefits. That is why we are proposing an “outside in” approach to rolling out full fibre so that those in harder-to-reach areas don’t have to wait until last to get the benefits, with £200m identified to support this.
Central to our strategy will be making sure that fixed and 5G technologies work seamlessly together. Full-fibre infrastructure is vital to underpin 5G coverage. We will also deliver policy reforms to help the 5G market expand, such as making sure spectrum is used efficiently, as well as continuing to bear down on the costs of deploying infrastructure.
As society becomes ever more digital and our digital economy continues to thrive, connectivity has become perhaps the single most important driver of growth and prosperity in the UK. We want everyone to benefit from world-class connectivity no matter where they live, work or travel. Our approach will increase investment in full-fibre broadband, create more commercial opportunities, and make it easier to roll out infrastructure for 5G. This will help us confirm the UK’S place as a world leader in technologies that will transform our economy, and our lives.