Anyone who has travelled to watch football at Edgar Street probably knows that mobile phone reception in Herefordshire is patchy to say the least.
There are areas even along 'A' roads where reception is unreliable.
Jesse Norman MP for Hereford is well aware of the problem and has secured a short debate in parliament specifically to highlight the problem in Herefordshire.
I have secured a short Commons debate on Tuesday, 6 January 2015 on
mobile phone, broadband and fixed line phone coverage in Herefordshire -
and I want to ask for your feedback.
In November, the Government conducted a consultation into partial mobile phone "not-spots". This is a very serious issue in Herefordshire. Hundreds of local people responded to my survey asking for their experiences and opinions. Their responses were hugely useful, allowing me to paint a vivid picture of what poor mobile coverage means for people in Herefordshire.
Last week, the Government announced that it has reached a legally binding agreement with the mobile network operators to increase coverage by 2017. As part of the £5bn investment programme, guaranteed coverage will be extended across 90 per cent of the UK geographic area. This will halve the areas currently blighted by patchy coverage.
This is excellent and most welcome news. But as the feedback from my last survey demonstrated, bad mobile phone coverage is just one aspect of poor communications in Herefordshire. Difficulties accessing a mobile signal are compounded by poor quality fixed line telephone services, and very slow internet speeds. Despite our early win in securing a fast broadband pilot, implementation by BT has been much slower than anticipated.
In fact, some progress is being made on all fronts. But in my debate on the 6th January I hope to highlight to Ministers how the combined effect of poor mobile signals, slow internet and patchy fixed line telephone services can be hugely isolating for people, and very bad for business.
By encouraging the government to view these issues as aspects of a whole, I want to make the particular case for Herefordshire. If you have any personal experiences that might help to inform the debate, please do get in touch.
In November, the Government conducted a consultation into partial mobile phone "not-spots". This is a very serious issue in Herefordshire. Hundreds of local people responded to my survey asking for their experiences and opinions. Their responses were hugely useful, allowing me to paint a vivid picture of what poor mobile coverage means for people in Herefordshire.
Last week, the Government announced that it has reached a legally binding agreement with the mobile network operators to increase coverage by 2017. As part of the £5bn investment programme, guaranteed coverage will be extended across 90 per cent of the UK geographic area. This will halve the areas currently blighted by patchy coverage.
This is excellent and most welcome news. But as the feedback from my last survey demonstrated, bad mobile phone coverage is just one aspect of poor communications in Herefordshire. Difficulties accessing a mobile signal are compounded by poor quality fixed line telephone services, and very slow internet speeds. Despite our early win in securing a fast broadband pilot, implementation by BT has been much slower than anticipated.
In fact, some progress is being made on all fronts. But in my debate on the 6th January I hope to highlight to Ministers how the combined effect of poor mobile signals, slow internet and patchy fixed line telephone services can be hugely isolating for people, and very bad for business.
By encouraging the government to view these issues as aspects of a whole, I want to make the particular case for Herefordshire. If you have any personal experiences that might help to inform the debate, please do get in touch.
Jesse Norman can be contacted by e-mail at: jesse.norman.mp@parliament.uk