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The UK government has launched a consultation around the persistent challenges in deploying gigabit-capable broadband to certain property types and particularly to flats.
Despite the UK making significant strides towards its goal of delivering nationwide gigabit coverage by 2032 – currently reaching 89% of premises – deployment to flats, particularly those with leasehold tenure, continues to lag. Gigabit-capable broadband is seen as essential for economic growth, productivity, and international competitiveness, with the sector itself valued at £50 billion.
Analysis of data from May 2025 shows 86.1% of all residential premises have access to a gigabit-capable connection, but this drops to just 79.6% for flats. It is estimated 1.2 million flats in England and Wales lack gigabit access.
The existing legal framework is provided by the Electronic Communications Code (the Code), which is intended to facilitate consensual agreements between network operators and landowners. The Telecommunications Infrastructure (Leasehold Property) Act (TILPA) 2021 was introduced to specifically address MDU issues, providing a fast-track court route when landowners fail to respond to repeated requests for access.
However key barriers to rollout remain, including, identifying the correct party to negotiate Code rights with and a lack of incentives for freeholders to address deployment requests from network operators.
The proposed policy aims to directly address these barriers by strengthening the leaseholders’ ability to initiate deployment requests. The core proposal is to:
> Imply a new right into an existing lease, allowing a residential leaseholder to request a gigabit-capable connection from their relevant freeholder.
> Impose a corresponding duty on the freeholder not to unreasonably refuse such a request.
This new mechanism is intended to be complementary to the Code, acting as a “nudge measure” to ensure the appropriate freeholder engages with a network operator and negotiations commence promptly.
The proposed policy would apply to any residential leaseholder in a building with two or more dwellings and covers any connection capable of delivering broadband access services at speeds of at least 1,000 Megabits per second (Mbps).
The consultation on these proposals runs until February 2026.
Connected Britain 2026 returns to the UK next September. Confirm your involvement early. Visit the website for more information: https://totaltele.com/connectedbritain
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