The National Infrastructure Commission (NIC) has published its 2023 Infrastructure Progress Review, praising the government’s progressive rollout of broadband connectivity.

“Deliver of full fibre and gigabit capable broadband is progressing rapidly,” the report said.

The government has recieved several praises in the report for their ‘genuine commitment’ to digital connectivity across the country, and the Commission has said that all of their recommendations have been met or partially met.

Currently, consumers are paying less for both fixed and mobile services than they did a decade ago, though prices will rise in April.

The government is on track to deliver its gigabit capable targets, according to the report, and has increased from 65 to 72% over the past year.

Much of this coverage is in credit to Virgin Media’s upgrade of its hybrid fibre network to be gigabit capable, which is easier than upgrading from a copper to fibre optic build.

Further, full fibre coverage has also increased from 30 to 45% in the last year.

Coverage, however, remains lagging in rural areas compared to urban areas. The UK Government’s Project Gigabit, launched in 2021, is aimed at directly addressing this issue.

Further, both the government and Ofcom have reformed their policies to ensure investments support the deployment of gigabit capable networks, as well as removing barriers for new gigabit capable networks.

The government’s Shared Rural Network agreement with mobile network operators have also increased 4G coverage across the UK, with over £500m in public investment matched by over £500m of private sector investment.

Despite the investment, however, 4G coverage is still lagging in different nations within the UK as rural and remote areas lack coverage.

Further, the UK is lacking in their strategic goals for 5G coverage, with no plans currently in place.

While 4G coverage plans are in place, most of the report’s critiques were surrounding this lack of 5G strategy.

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As well, the poor coverage on rail networks and lack of reporting on train connectivity also needed improvement.

But the report did note that 5G coverage continues to grow, with over 12,000 deployments now in place in the UK, nearly double the 6,500 reported in 2021. These have mostly been in urban areas, and most are not standalone.

Only standalone 5G networks can deliver the full range of 5G capabilities – most UK deployments are connected to a 4G core and therefore cannot support the full range.

Based on these findings in the report, the NIC has recommended that the government set out a clear 5G vision in the upcoming Wireless Infrastructure Strategy.