27 July 2025, 09:16
Britain wants to be a global tech powerhouse – but I can’t get phone signal on the M42?
Picture:
Alamy
By George Icke
Barely a day goes by without a Government Minister confidently declaring that the UK is on track to become a global powerhouse of industry and technology.
We’re told to be excited about our future as a world leader in AI, digital trade, green energy and all the other buzzwords that Westminster loves to throw around. Ministers beam as they sign new post-Brexit trade deals, promising economic growth fueled by innovation.
But here’s the uncomfortable truth: while our politicians are busy playing global statesmen, we can’t even get a decent phone signal on the country’s most critical transport routes.
Take the M42, for example, or worse still, the A42. Anyone who has ever had the misfortune of using those roads will know exactly what I’m talking about. There is, quite literally, no signal from Derbyshire until you’re near Birmingham and finally reconnected to modern civilisation via the M6. That’s a major stretch of motorway, a key artery between the East and West Midlands, where your mobile might as well be a brick, let alone a Nokia brick.
If that’s not frustrating enough, try the M69. It’s a busy road between the M1 at Leicester and the M6 at Coventry. Again, no signal. None. I know this because I drive it every day. It’s a route where, in theory, I could easily make half a dozen work calls. Instead, I end up repeatedly dialling the same number, losing signal mid-conversation, and giving up or shouting a plethora of swear words, hoping that they can’t hear me either. In an era of hybrid working, mobile offices and constant connectivity, this isn’t just a minor inconvenience. It’s a national embarrassment.
Yet, contrary to the lyrics of the D-Ream hit ‘Things Can Only Get Better, somehow if you choose to travel by train, it can get much, much worse. I avoid using the train unless absolutely necessary. That’s partly because tickets are so astronomically expensive, but also because the trains themselves are often overcrowded, chronically delayed, and frankly filthy. But if you need to get from the Midlands to London, rail is still the only real option.
And yet, even on those supposedly “flagship” intercity routes, often costing hundreds of pounds for a standard return, the phone signal is laughable. Forget mobile data; the onboard WiFi, which is advertised as a selling point, is so poor that sending an email feels like a minor miracle, and I should rush to buy a ticket for the EuroMillions. Streaming? Impossible. A video call? Please, don’t make me laugh.
This is not just about personal irritation. It’s about national credibility. The Government says it’s “going for growth.” In the past few weeks alone, we’ve seen ministers proudly announce trade deals with global partners. That’s all well and good, but it raises a serious question: are we trying to run before we can even walk?
Because what message does it send to international businesspeople and investors if their first experience of Britain is a country where they can’t even get online? What does it say when their signal drops out halfway through a conference call? When mobile coverage disappears on the motorway and the train WiFi is on loan from Bletchley Park?
You can’t be a digital-first economy with analogue infrastructure. You can’t claim to be a high-tech, connected nation if people can’t stay connected for a two-hour journey outside of London. And you certainly can’t compete on the global stage if the very backbone of your country, your transport and telecoms network, is stuck in the past.
I am not trying to be anti-Britain or overly negative—quite the opposite. Britain has incredible potential. We have the talent, creativity, and entrepreneurial spirit. But none of that matters if we continue to overlook the basics. Growth starts with infrastructure. Connectivity isn’t a luxury anymore; it’s a necessity.
Ministers can talk about global leadership. They can fly the flag at international summits. But before we start chasing Silicon Valley dreams, perhaps we should make sure people can make a phone call somewhere between Leicester and Coventry.
Only then will the slogan “Global Britain” stop sounding like the punchline of a joke and start to feel like a reality.
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