Cumbrian MPs call for better rural connectivity after Storm Éowyn
Demands have been made to improve communication technology in rural areas following Storm Éowyn.Cumbrian MPs met telecoms providers and mobile network operators in Parliament this week, telling them to "step up and invest" after power cuts left people with no way to communicate.Labour's Josh MacAlister, who represents Whitehaven and Workington, said: "We don't think enough is being done to improve connectivity in rural areas of Cumbria or to respond quickly when issues occur."Trade association Mobile UK said the industry was "exploring new ways" to provide temporary coverage or back-up power sources to impacted areas.
Thousands of homes were left without power during Storm Éowyn in January.Issues were exacerbated by the digital phone line switchover, MacAlister said.People had been switched from physical copper-based landlines to internet-based services as part of larger roll-out.
MacAlister said rural areas where the mobile signal was reliant on one mast and where landlines had been changed to connect via the internet were left with "no way to communicate" during power cuts.He called for improvements such as battery back up at masts."We also want to see more data sharing across the system," MacAlister said. "This should be happening already."
'Extreme weather'
Mobile UK director of policy and communications Gareth Elliot said its operators had worked "around the clock" to repair damaged equipment "as quickly as possible after the unprecedented wind speeds of Storm Éowyn".He said the mobile industry had already taken "important steps to improve resiliency during extreme weather events".Work included installing masts to provide overlapping coverage where possible.Many of the UK's mobile operators are developing self-powering mobile mast sites so that connectivity is not entirely reliant on power companies to provide electricity, Mobile UK said.
The energy regulator Ofgem said its local network investment plan for 2028 to 2032 would require upgrades and reinforcements to withstand more regular extreme weather events.A spokesperson for Electricity North West said it "relies on resilient mobile networks" to communicate with customers during incidents."We completely support the need for mobile operators to provide increased resilience of phone masts."MacAlistair said MPs had convened a further meeting with the utility companies at the start of June "to check on progress".
Follow BBC Cumbria on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
South Wales Argus
4 hours ago
- South Wales Argus
Concern over proposed decriminalisation of killing unborn children
How? By removing 'all legal protection' from the unborn child via 'the Crime and Policing Bill' going through Parliament, by tabling extreme amendments to this Bill that would decriminalise the killing of unborn children (up to birth) by removing the little legal protection they still have. We must write and ask our MPs to vote "no" against these extreme amendments to this Bill - New Clause 1 by Tonia Antoiazzi MP and New Clause 20 by Stella Creasy MP if we value human life, especially the unborn child, who has no voice but ours. Write to your MP at House of Commons, London SW1A OAA. Norman Plaisted, Newport
Sky News
10 hours ago
- Sky News
Work and pensions secretary tells MPs controversial disability benefit reforms will go ahead next year
The government has told MPs it will not back down from its controversial reforms to disability benefits, which are set to be introduced to parliament later this month. More than 100 Labour MPs are thought to have concerns about the plans to cut nearly £5bn from the welfare bill by restricting personal independence payments (PIP) and the health top-up to Universal Credit. Charities say the changes will have a "catastrophic" effect on vulnerable people. 3:06 The chair of the Commons' Work and Pensions Committee wrote to the secretary of state, Liz Kendall, last month, calling on the government to delay the changes until a full assessment is carried out of the impact on employment, poverty and health. Labour MP Debbie Abrahams wrote that while there was a case for reform to disability benefits, "the evidence indicated [these changes] might not improve outcomes for most claimants, but instead push many into poverty and further away from the labour market". But Ms Kendall has written back, in a letter made public on Wednesday, to reject the idea because the bill needs final approval from parliament in November in order for the changes to take effect in 2026. She wrote: "We need urgent action to help people who can work, into work. With one in eight young people now not in education, employment or training and nearly 2.8 million people out of work due to long-term sickness, and spending on health and disability benefits set to rise by an additional £18bn, we must change course. "We have consistently been clear that we are not consulting on every proposal. "Instead, parliament will have the opportunity to fully debate, propose amendments to, and vote on areas where we have announced urgent reforms that are not subject to consultation. "With PIP caseload and costs forecast to continue rising, reforms are needed now to make the system sustainable, while supporting those people with the greatest needs." 3:38 What is the government's plan? The government says the PIP caseload has more than doubled from 15,000 new claims per month in 2019 to 34,000. PIP is a benefit to help disabled people with the increased costs of day-to-day living. It is proposed that claimants will need to achieve four points out of eight in their assessment to qualify for the benefit, and the government says some 370,000 existing claimants will lose out when reassessed. Ms Kendall says the growth in claims means the PIP caseload will still increase by the end of the parliament. The government will also tackle what Ms Kendall called the "perverse incentive" to claim the health top-up for Universal Credit by freezing it at £97 a week for existing claimants, and slashing the rate to £50 a week for new claimants. The average loss of benefits will be £1,700 a year for some three million people. Claimants with the most serious conditions, who have been assessed as never able to work, will not be subject to reassessment, ministers say, allowing them to have peace of mind. The government will provide £1bn for targeted support schemes to help disabled people into work. But it's estimated these will help only some 70,000 people find employment. 1:23 Ms Kendall said a minister in her department is engaging with disabled people and organisations about the PIP assessment process, but said: "The PIP assessment review will rightly take time and require extensive engagement, and we cannot wait for its conclusion to make the urgently needed changes to the PIP eligibility criteria." 'Deeply disappointing news' The first minister of Wales, Eluned Morgan, who is gearing up for elections next year, told Sky News she had spoken to Ms Kendall about her concerns last week. She said: "This is going to be really challenging for a lot of people in Wales. We know more people in Wales will be affected by PIP than in any other part of the country. "We do think there needs to be reform of welfare because we believe people can work should work, but in Wales we have examples of where we hold people's hands, stand by them, we help them into work, and we think that's more of a productive approach." Labour MP Richard Burgon, who has vowed to vote against the reforms, said: "This will be deeply disappointing news for all the MPs who've been urging the government to delay this decision. Instead of allowing time for proper scrutiny and meaningful dialogue with disabled people, the government has brushed aside MPs' genuine concerns.
Telegraph
12 hours ago
- Telegraph
The Daily T: ‘Spending like a drunken sailor'– Rachel Reeves's splurge-a-thon
Chancellor Rachel Reeves has unveiled her first major spending review, pledging tens of billions in additional funding for public services, including £29 billion a year for the NHS, a £4.5 billion boost to the schools budget, and a rise in defence spending to 2.6% of GDP by 2027. But Reeves stopped short of explaining how the government will actually fund these ambitious commitments, fuelling Tory warnings of looming tax hikes. Shadow chancellor Mel Stride accused her of having 'completely lost control', calling it a 'spend now, tax later' plan that kicks tough choices down the road for Labour. So how will the Government balance the books? And what will the spending review mean for you? Camilla is outside Parliament with Reform's Richard Tice who says Reeves is 'cratering the economy' and is obsessed with his party. Plus, Tory Andrew Griffith explains why his party has disowned Liz Truss's economics and Labour MP's Chris Curtis says today's plans will help his party 'stand up to the forces of people like Nigel Farage'.
