MPs meet with mobile operators over connectivity concerns
Cumbrian MPs have met with mobile operators, trade bodies and Electricity North West about communications resilience in power outages.
Britain's analogue phone system – run on traditional copper lines – is to be phased out by January 2027 meaning an end to the traditional, analogue, landline phone.
The existing network, called the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN), will be withdrawn.
The PSTN is an aging network that is becoming harder and more expensive to maintain
With Openreach's switch off of the copper network, residents in remote areas of Cumbria will be increasingly reliant on their mobile network when the power goes off.
Landline phones will work on a digital phone line, but concerns have been raised about its suitability in remote locations.
Carlisle MP Julie Minns has called on providers to write to people who are vulnerable to being cut off in the event of a storm.
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'I'm calling on communications providers to tell Electricity North West and Scottish Power where their masts are and how quickly they can get generator backup to masts that lose power in storm events,' said Julie.
'I also want comms providers to write to customers of electricity networks who are vulnerable in the event of power cuts to let them know what steps they can take in an emergency.'
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