Push for West Cornwall and Scillies to be “best connected” rural area in UK

West Cornwall and Scillies MP, Andrew George, is stepping up his campaign on Government and commercial operators to make the region the best connected rural area in the UK.

Mr George is also calling on local people who still need better mobile signals in their area to contact his office so that they can work together to find a solution. He has already taken up many cases.

In April this year, Superfast Cornwall announced that over a third of all Cornish homes and businesses had access to the high speed technology on the fibre network. Mr George lobbied for a solution to ensure that the Isles of Scilly also has full access to Superfast services after taking up concerns with Government Ministers, Crown Estates and others in 2011. Last year fibre optic cables were brought to the Scillies in a £3.7 million scheme which will give islanders faster Internet speeds.

Mr George is also pressing Digital Economy Minister, Ed Vaizey MP, to ensure that the Government’s Mobile Infrastructure Project (MIP) will target the coverage constraints faced in remoter areas of West Cornwall which are mobile phone signal “not spots”. He has also urged the Government to make sure that “not spots” should be given priority to have landlines restored after service failure over those areas which have alternative means of communication.

He has pressed British Telecom to accelerate the roll out of Superfast Broadband across Cornwall as many local communities still experience limited provision.

Mr George said, “A decent 3G and Superfast Broadband signal fit for the technological requirements of this day and age is now essential for most residents and local businesses.

“But many rural areas still need extra support to get fully connected. 26% of Cornwall is still in mobile phone “non-spot” areas.

“I’m keen to hear from any constituents who still experience problems with mobile phone or Broadband access. West Cornwall and the Scillies should be fully connected. Any area that is not connected deserves some answers from both Government and the commercial operators.”