Sir,
News that Britain is suffering from vast digital deserts when it comes to mobile phone coverage will come as no surprise to many of Britain’s farmers (“Britain has worse 4G coverage than Romania, Albania and Peru, report finds”, 14 December).
The National Infrastructure Committee report enforces the concerns that NFU members have been telling us about for years, when it comes to mobile signals and broadband coverage in this country. That’s why we continue to urge Government to take action to ensure there is complete mobile network coverage and to introduce targeted intervention to accelerate not-spot coverage.
Farmers need 4G coverage for voice and text, to access the internet and get the data services they need. Our member survey showed that 70% of smartphone users have no access to 4G at all. Where there is coverage farmers often report voice signal is being lost.
The Government needs to commit to providing superfast broadband infrastructure for all farmers and rural communities and ensure plans for 5G are ‘rural-proofed’ so everyone can make the most of this potential digital revolution.
Everyone in rural Britain needs access to reliable broadband and mobile services to ensure they can remain competitive in a digital age, even if it’s just to complete essential government services.
Yours,
Guy Smith,
National Farmers’ Union Vice President