Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of Part 11 of the Electronic Communications Code in providing flexibility to improve the network.

Parts 11 and 12 of the Electronic Communications Code provide rights to fly lines over land and set out when and how someone can object to these installations. The aim is to balance the efficient deployment of overhead networks with the interests of those affected by them. The provisions under Parts 11 and 12 relate primarily to fixed-line infrastructure deployment.

Part 11 was amended through the Product Security and Telecommunications Infrastructure Act 2022 to support greater infrastructure sharing, providing alternatives for network expansion. The measures in that Act received Parliamentary scrutiny and were subject to a published De Minimis Impact Assessment.

A separate assessment of these provisions has not been completed, but the impact of all the 2022 changes will be assessed in due course.