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New report

How the UK can gain the full benefits of the 5G revolution

The Centre of Policy Studies (CPS) is an influential think tank in Westminster. Its mission is to develop policies that widen enterprise, ownership and opportunity. Recently, as part of the Speed Up Britain campaign, they issued a new report which discusses the potential of 5G for the UK and what type of benefits we can expect from the next-generation technology.

The economic opportunity with 5G

5G can bring numerous benefits to different industries, and with trials taking place across the country, it is evident that digital connectivity and 5G can improve the UK’s economy.

5G will impact us at a national and regional level, helping local areas attract and retain businesses, and support the local community with wider social and economic opportunities.

By 2027, the Government has a target for most of the population to be covered by a 5G signal. If 51% of this target population can get 5G, research suggests that £34.1 billion of additional economic output could be created between 2021 and 2027.

In a press release for the launch of the CPS report, the Minister of Digital Infrastructure, Matt Warman, stated:

"It is our national mission to future-proof the UK’s networks with revolutionary 5G technology. Thanks to government and industry action, 5G is available in more than 70 towns and cities.

Alongside record amounts of funding, we are exploring how to bust any barriers holding back industries from speeding up rollout. We’ve committed to reforming planning law and to consult on whether further reforms to the Electronic Communications Code are needed and will consider the points raised in this report carefully.”

Overcoming the barriers

The CPS report details some of the barriers to 5G deployment and identifies how we can overcome these as joint industry collaborations. The UK is facing challenges which impact the delivery of 5G, and these need to be addressed to speed up its rollout. One of the main barriers highlighted by the report authors, Alex Jackman and Nick King, is the need to reform the Electronic Communications Code (ECC) and national planning rules.

The Government needs to support the telecoms industry and landowner community to make the rollout of digital infrastructure easier and quicker through the ECC. Although the revised legislation has progressed since 2017, and acted as a guide to regulate the relationship between site providers and operators, who host the equipment needed for mobile networks, it is not working as intended and needs further revising.

The Speed Up Britain campaign, supported by Cornerstone and other industry peers, is working with the Government to make some changes to the ECC, to build better networks for the future. Download the CPS report to get a full insight into 5G opportunities and how you can continue supporting the UK to keep us all connected.

www.cornerstone.network/media/the-centre-of-policy-studies-launches-new-report

Report highlights

Agriculture

By adopting 5G, farm businesses can gain significant advantages through robotics, clean technology and the Internet of Things. Productivity benefits could be achieved from:

Using drones to scan crops and targeting pesticides
Real-time data on heavily pregnant cattle, enabling farmers to protect their stock
Identifying moisture levels in soil to reduce the need to water certain areas

Construction

The Government believes a thriving construction sector is necessary to support economic growth. 5G technology can help support this sector through:

5G-enabled robotics that can aid the building process
Drones which can be utilised to support site management
Augmented and virtual reality technology to support training

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