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Saying No To ‘Not-spots’
Mobile phone mast (opens in new window)
Living and working in a rural mobile phone ‘not-spot’ presents daily challenges for Daphne Jackson. Daphne, who runs a farm with holiday cottages in Ettrick, Scottish Borders, says the lack of mobile coverage in her area affects many aspects of her life, from running her business to connecting with family and friends.
Experiences such as Daphne’s have prompted SAC’s Rural Policy Centre to publish a new briefing about the lack of mobile phone coverage in rural Scotland and what could be done to reduce the ‘not-spots’ problem. Recommendations include greater clarity about the roles of Westminster and Holyrood in addressing the issues, better mapping of ‘not-spots’ to indicate where improvements are needed most and a more detailed examination of the infrastructure and commercial barriers to mobile coverage in rural areas.
Daphne explained: “It’s hard to run and diversify a rural business if you cannot take calls on the move, while tourists themselves expect to have mobile coverage and avoid straying far from areas where they can use their phones. My ability to make social connections is affected by the lack of coverage while it also causes a worry because it makes dealing with emergencies more difficult.”
Dr Jane Atterton of the Rural Policy Centre said: “Daphne is not alone. Many parts of rural Scotland have no, or very limited and unreliable, mobile phone coverage and people living in these so-called ‘not-spots’ can suffer problems ranging from inconvenience and social exclusion to potentially life-threatening scenarios. Not being easily contactable may also result in lost business or networking opportunities.
“Despite some actions to address the existence of not-spots, more needs to be done to reduce the negative impacts they have on the lives of those living and working in rural areas.”