Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made, if any, of the potential for emergency use of satellite communication in remote areas of the UK which are currently without any normal mobile coverage.

Answered by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

Satellite connectivity can complement the coverage provided by terrestrial mobile networks by providing connectivity, for example, in remote areas beyond their reach. The mobile operators have already used satellite services to provide backhaul to some Shared Rural Network sites where it is challenging to provide traditional fibre or microwave backhaul.

Ofcom is currently consulting on proposals to authorise Direct to Device satellite services in certain mobile spectrum bands in the UK. These proposals could enable people to make satellite calls from their mobile phones and bring mobile coverage to rural areas. This consultation is an important and pioneering step towards enabling these services. We also welcome Vodafone’s recent trial in which the first ever video call over satellite was made, from an area with no terrestrial mobile coverage.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they have had, if any, with representatives of community councils in the Highland Council area about the future of the Shared Rural Network programme.

Answered by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

Feedback from community councils and special interest groups play an important role in agreeing the best locations for new infrastructure as part of the Shared Rural Network (SRN). Both the government and the four mobile network operators have worked with stakeholders across Scotland to ensure the benefits of new sites are balanced with any environmental impacts and other concerns.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask His Majesty's Government what further consideration they have given to the size and coverage of the Shared Rural Network programme, and whether they have made any change to the scale of the programme or number of masts required as a result.

Answered by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The Shared Rural Network (SRN) has already delivered significant coverage improvements across the UK. However, there are still rural parts of the UK where there is either limited or no mobile coverage. The government-funded parts of the SRN will deliver this new coverage by utilising existing Home Office masts across Great Britain and building new masts in Scotland. We continue to work with the four mobile network operators to minimise the number of new masts required in Scotland and now expect to meet this part of the programme’s objectives with far fewer masts than originally planned. We expect to reach a position on exactly how many new masts will be built in Scotland soon.