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The UK Government has published its Infrastructure Strategy for the next 10 years – backed by £725bn in long-term funding for maintenance and major projects, which promises to “transform how infrastructure projects are planned and delivered” in order to “deliver stability, investment and national renewal“. And there’s some good news for broadband and mobile networks.
Naturally, our focus here is on cutting through the usual mass of political soundbites in order to identify the highlights for the telecoms side of things, which this week already saw the government confirm that it would invest £1.9bn into broadband and mobile projects (this comes from existing commitments) until 2029/30 (2025 Spending Review).
At present the government has a variety of research projects, such as for OpenRAN, future 6G mobile and various other technology trials. On top of that, the £5bn Project Gigabit broadband roll-out programme is knee-deep in the process of helping to extend such networks to 99% of the UK by 2032.
After that, there’s also the £1bn Shared Rural Network (SRN) project, which is working to extend geographic 4G coverage (aggregate) to 95% by the end of 2025 (although technically this won’t complete until 2027). The government also retains an ambition “for all populated areas” to have access to Standalone 5G (5G SA) based mobile broadband technology by 2030 (NOT to be confused with geographic coverage).
However, we nearly didn’t notice that the new 10-Year UK Infrastructure Strategy (10YIS) had been published, which is partly because the government didn’t furnish us with a press release and also partly because the official announcement made no mention of either digital infrastructure, broadband or mobile networks. Instead, the public announcement chose to focus more on health, education, justice and transport.
Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves, said:
“Infrastructure is crucial to unlocking growth across the country, but for too long investment has been squeezed. Crumbling public buildings are a sign of the decay that has seeped into our everyday lives because of a total failure to plan and invest.
We’re not just fixing buildings – we’re enhancing public services, improving lives and creating the conditions for sustainable economic growth in communities throughout the UK.
This will deliver the decade of national renewal we promised Britain, and fulfil our Plan for Change goals to kickstart economic growth, and build an NHS fit for the future.”
The good news is that the full strategy document does cover mobile and broadband networks, albeit without adding much in the way of truly new information. But we do get confirmation of the government’s effort to finally update the ECC (electronic comms code) rules in order to help make broadband and mobile infrastructure sharing, as well as network upgrades and related dispute resolution, easier to deliver (see our summary).
The strategy also confirms a plan to “bring forward“a more flexible permitting system (aka – flexi-permits) for street works across England, “if the ongoing trials are successful“, and they confirmed their intention to ease the process of getting gigabit deployment for leaseholders into multi-dwelling units / large residential buildings (background), albeit while still being vague on the details.
As for that final c.1% of premises, where fixed gigabit broadband networks are often too expensive to build, the strategy said it would aim to “ensure that the regulatory regime promotes innovation and the growth of alternative technologies, such as satellite and fixed wireless access“. Quite how they’ll do this is unclear, but the government is overdue to update their Universal Service Obligation (USO) for broadband, which continues to mandate a download speed of just 10Mbps (1Mbps upload) as the minimum requirement. The broadband voucher scheme could potentially also be made more accepting of alternative technologies.
In addition, £41 million is being provided to help introduce Low Earth Orbit (LEO) based broadband satellite connectivity “on all mainline trains” in order to “significantly improve both the availability and internet data connection speeds for Wi-Fi connected passengers.”
Finally, the government said they would be carrying out a review of the mobile market in order to better understand how it will evolve, with their initial conclusions and next steps being published by the end of 2025.
We’ve pasted all the relevant mentions below. But as we said earlier, there’s nothing much that we haven’t reported on before in all this, although it does help to confirm the government’s future direction of travel.
Broadband and Mobile Plans in the Infrastructure Strategy
Upgrading telecoms networks and closing the digital divide
3.43 The UK is currently undergoing a transformation of its digital infrastructure. 5G is being rolled out across the country and old copper broadband networks are being replaced with new gigabit capable connections.
3.44 Gigabit broadband coverage now covers more than 87% of UK premises, of which more than 77% is full fibre coverage (this is up from gigabit broadband coverage of 37% of premises by the end of 2020, of which 19% were full fibre connections). The government provided £1.9 billion in the Spending Review 2025 for Building Digital UK, which includes funding to connect more homes and business to gigabit broadband. Through Project Gigabit the government is committed to reaching 99% coverage of UK premises, which is now expected by 2032.
3.45 The government will continue to support commercial deployment of gigabit networks. Supported by pro-competition measures and other interventions put in place by government, industry has made plans to invest over £40 billion in full fibre by 2030.
3.46 The government is committed to removing barriers to the deployment of fixed infrastructure so that the commercial market can deliver as far and as fast as possible. This includes:
• Implementing the remaining provisions of the Product Security and Telecommunications Infrastructure Act 2022 as soon as possible.
• Bringing forward a more flexible permitting system for street works across England, if the ongoing trials are successful.
• Easing the process for gigabit deployment for leaseholders in multi-dwelling units, such as blocks of flats, and consulting on proposals as soon as possible.
3.47 For the very hard to reach areas, the government will ensure that the regulatory regime promotes innovation and the growth of alternative technologies, such as satellite and fixed wireless access.
3.48 As new networks are rolled out, legacy networks are being withdrawn, including the Public Switched Telephone Network, copper broadband services and 2G and 3G networks. For most consumers, these changes will be straightforward, as they will already have migrated on to new technologies. However, others may need to take action to upgrade services ahead of withdrawal. The government will work with industry and Ofcom to clearly communicate future network changes. This will ensure that consumers are protected during the transition to improved services and all sectors of the economy are protected and prepared for these transitions.
3.49 Businesses and critical national infrastructure also use digital infrastructure connectivity to provide products and services. To enable businesses and infrastructure providers to know when they need to upgrade, the government will work with industry to set out a forward-looking connectivity timeline. This will allow better planning of upgrades as part of regular research and development and/or lifecycle replacement, improving economic efficiency, saving public and private money and reducing the risk to life and critical services from upgrades.
Improving mobile networks
3.50 High quality mobile coverage is now a necessity. Yet in many places coverage remains patchy and unreliable. The government has therefore asked Ofcom to provide accurate, public reporting on mobile coverage and performance. Ofcom have committed to launching their improved online coverage checker in June 2025.
3.51 Through the Shared Rural Network programme the government has worked with Mobile Network Operators to improve 4G coverage in more rural areas. The programme has already met its target of delivering 95% 4G coverage from at least one Mobile Network Operator and will now continue to deliver into the most remote areas.123 The government is working with the Mobile Network Operators on interventions in areas which will bring the highest benefits per site, with a focus on coverage to premises and infrastructure.
3.52 The government’s ambition is for all populated areas to have standalone 5G by 2030, delivered through commercial investment. It will enable a range of new industrial applications across the economy, including in manufacturing, broadcasting, public services, transport and logistics. An Analysys Mason study found that 5G adoption in key sectors could realise up to £37 billion additional Gross Value Added in the period from 2022 to 2035.
3.53 The government will also use its purchasing power, through public sector procurement, to show leadership on the take up of new services, including innovative 5G use cases in the public sector, where appropriate. To support further deployment of wireless infrastructure, government will remove barriers to digital infrastructure deployment, including by publishing a call for evidence on changes to planning laws that could enable faster rollout of fixed and mobile coverage.
3.54 The mobile market is evolving. Following the Competition and Markets Authority’s approval of the Vodafone and Three merger, Ofcom and the CMA will oversee their commitments to deliver £11 billion investment in standalone 5G networks and 99% population coverage by 2034. BT-EE and Virgin Media O2 also have ambitious plans. To understand the impact of the evolution of the market on the digital sector, the government is carrying out a review of the mobile market. Initial conclusions and next steps will be published by the end of 2025.
Taking a ‘digital first’ approach to infrastructure
3.55 The future digital needs of the owners and users of infrastructure should be considered from the earliest stages of infrastructure planning. Failure to do so results in costly retrofits and lost benefits. The government will therefore ensure that digital infrastructure needs are considered during spatial planning for infrastructure, and from the start of project development.
3.56 Digital infrastructure will be a core part of emerging Spatial Development Strategies, so that telecoms providers will have opportunities to better understand future demand and to deliver in advance of growth, in ways that reduce costs and disruption.
3.57 As the National Infrastructure Commission recommended, telecommunications needs must also be considered for individual infrastructure sectors – across the energy, water and transport sectors. The government will work with Ofcom and other relevant regulators to set out the government’s assessment of the telecommunications needs for these sectors by the end of 2026, ahead of the next update to this Strategy. In the longer term, NISTA and DSIT will continue to lead government’s work on identifying and planning for digital infrastructure needs and challenges, across telecoms and non-telecoms digital infrastructure, for the coming decades.
3.58 To support passenger connectivity on the rail network and deliver against the government’s ambition to ensure that all infrastructure has adequate digital infrastructure, £41 million is being provided to introduce low-earth-orbit satellite connectivity on all mainline trains, significantly improving both the availability and internet data connection speeds for Wi-Fi connected passengers.