Asked by: Catherine Fookes (Labour - Monmouthshire)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps he is taking to ensure rural households have access to adequate smart meter network coverage.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Data Communications Company (DCC) is the organisation responsible for the smart metering network in Great Britain, and is obligated to provide smart meter network connectivity to at least 99.25% of premises across GB. The Government is working closely with the DCC to ensure that smart meter connectivity can be extended to the small minority of unserved properties in all regions, including rural areas, as soon as reasonably possible.
One such solution, currently being rolled out, is Virtual WAN (VWAN) which involves using customers’ broadband connection, (with consent), to carry smart metering communications.