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The new Labour government has told telcos they must be more mindful of community concerns when deploying infrastructure or else laws may be changed to protect the public interest
The UK technology minister Chris Bryant has penned an open letter to the UK’s network operators reiterating the government’s commitment to nationwide gigabit-capable broadband but encouraging operators to avoid deploying poles wherever possible.
The letter says that industry players must work more collaboratively with each other and the with local authorities to ensure minimal disruption, particularly with regards to overhead infrastructure.
In recent years, public complaints about telegraph poles have been on the rise, with detractors not only bemoaning their ugliness but also highlighting their vulnerability during storms. This had led to a growing movement seeking to revoke poles’ Permitted Development (PD) rights, which enable telecoms operators to erect poles at relatively short notice with minimal red tape.
In response to these complaints, the previous Conservative government said in March that they would revise the existing Code of Practice around deploying poles to ensure telcos engage more closely with local communities before deploying overhead infrastructure.
This week’s open letter suggests that the government continue this work to revise the Code of Practice without revoking PD rights.
“I am acutely aware of public concerns surrounding the deployment of telegraph poles. Many people are calling for the Government to remove permitted development rights for poles. I do not, at this stage, believe that this is the right move. I want to ensure that my Department does everything it can to support fast-paced rollout of digital infrastructure across the UK to meet the Government’s objectives,” said telecoms minister Chris Bryant in an open letter to network operators. “However, at the same time, we must look to address the concerns that people across this country have expressed and recognise that unnecessary pole deployment is immensely frustrating for them.”
“It is my hope that a revised Code of Practice can set out examples of considerations that should be taken into account before new poles are deployed; and that it can be brought into effect this autumn to ensure that community voices can be taken into account,” he added.
The government will hold a roundtable to discuss these issues with the industry in September.
In the conclusion of his letter, Bryant said that telcos must do more to engage with local communities and legislative measures could be taken if these dialogues do not notably improve.
“I will not hesitate to consider changing existing regulations or wider legislative options to ensure that communities’ concerns are taken into account when deploying infrastructure,” he said.
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