Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Mobile Phone Signal: Rural Communities

Wednesday 12 November 2025 · 2 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 0 Partly answered 2 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Greg Smith raised concerns about villages in his constituency lacking mobile coverage despite efforts with previous Ministers and networks.
  • Jenny Riddell-Carpenter highlighted that in Suffolk Coastal, three quarters of households have indoor voice call service compared to the national average of over 90%.
  • The Minister offered to meet both MPs to discuss specific notspots and connectivity issues in their constituencies.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Greg Smith Con Mid Buckinghamshire
Agriculture & Rural Affairs
Context

Villages such as Cuddington and Bryants Bottom in the questioner's constituency still have zero mobile coverage despite proximity to urban areas. Previous efforts with the Minister's predecessor and network providers have not resulted in improvement.

Question

I am grateful to the Minister for his answer, but villages in my constituency—less than 50 miles from where we all are now—such as Cuddington and Bryants Bottom still have zero mobile coverage. I have raised this issue with the Minister’s predecessor and all the networks. When are we going to get to a point where warm words about rural connectivity turn into actual rural connectivity?

Answer from The Minister for Digital Government and Data (Ian Murray)

The shared rural network has already delivered for 95% of the UK’s land mass a year early, and we are fully committed to making sure that 4G is available to all our populations. If the hon. Gentleman wishes to write to me, I would be very happy to meet him about the specific notspots in his constituency.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The Minister did not provide a specific timeline or commitment for improving coverage in Cuddington and Bryants Bottom.

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Q2 Jenny Riddell-Carpenter Lab Suffolk Coastal
Transport Environment
Context

In Suffolk Coastal, only about three quarters of households have indoor service for voice calls compared to the national average of over 90%. This affects many rural areas such as Woodbridge, Bawdsey and the peninsula.

Question

In Suffolk Coastal, about three quarters of households have indoor service for voice calls, compared with the national average of over 90%. Across Woodbridge, Bawdsey and the peninsula, so many households rely on network coverage, but they have zero service. Will the Minister meet me to discuss this important issue, which affects not just my constituency but rural constituencies as a whole?

Answer from The Minister for Digital Government and Data (Ian Murray)

Many Members raise with me the particular issue of notspots in their constituencies, as well as where connectivity is not as good as we would like it to be. I would be very happy to offer a meeting to my hon. Friend.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The Minister did not provide specific details on addressing the coverage issues in Suffolk Coastal beyond an offer of a meeting.

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