Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 24 June 2014, Official Report, column 125W, on mobile phones: Herefordshire, what the strength is of the mobile reception that is provided in Fownhope.

The nature of mobile reception means that the strength of signal received by a handset varies over a set area, and is affected by local geography, and even by buildings or trees. It is also affected by the handset used, as not all mobile phones are equal in their ability to pick up a signal.

The Mobile Infrastructure Project's planning assesses signal at a level of Neg 86dBm. The Project can intervene in areas where there is no mobile coverage, at this level, from any operator, and where the cost of the build of a mast considered alongside the numbers of premises that would benefit from the additional coverage provides value for money.