Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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495. To ask the Minister for Rural and Community Development the details of each local authority that has and has not, respectively, mapped local mobile phone black spots to date, in tabular form; the number of black spots identified by local authority; and the funding and guidance supports available to local authorities to map same. [14784/19]

Seán Canney (Galway East, Independent)
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In 2017, officials from my Department, the Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment and a small number of Local Authorities met to examine the potential for mapping mobile phone blackspots in Ireland.

On foot of these meetings, an invitation was issued in late 2017 to all Local Authorities to provide data on 5-6 prioritised local blackspots.

Some Local Authorities provided details of more than the 5-6 blackspots requested. However, the intention was only to identify areas of immediate priority for the purposes of the exercise in question, rather than to compile a definitive list of blackspots across the country.

While the exercise was informative, it was not comprehensive. Of the thirty one Local Authorities, only seventeen returned data to feed into the exercise. The majority of Local Authorities did not have the capacity to carry out technical testing. Furthermore, the methods used to collect the data varied.

Table 1 provides details of these seventeen Local Authorities and the number of blackspots they each identified.

During the mapping exercise, mobile network operators and infrastructure providers were increasing the number of mobile phone sites in service, as well as upgrading existing networks. As a consequence, the data that was collected in 2018 only represents a snapshot in time for certain areas and could not be interpreted as a definitive source of information regarding mobile phone blackspots. Nor would it be a fair reflection of the current situation, as network developments are taking place on an on-going basis.

ComReg recently published a digital map of outdoor mobile phone coverage for 2G, 3G and 4G services which is more comprehensive than the earlier mapping exercise. This map shows the quality and prevalence of mobile phone coverage across the country.

With regard to funding and support, my Department provided €35,000 to each Local Authority in 2018 to support the appointment of a Broadband Officer. Broadband Officers are tasked with co-ordinating broadband and telecommunications development in their Local Authority areas and their role is much broader than identifying mobile phone blackspots. Broadband Officer funding increased to €42,000 for each Local Authority for 2019.

My Department has also assigned liaison officers to support Local Authority Broadband Officers. At the implementation stage of the blackspot data collection exercise, a technical information document was provided to every Local Authority to guide them in their work.

My Department will continue to work with Local Authorities and telecommunications providers throughout 2019 to ensure that new infrastructure is targeted to areas most in need.

Table 1 - Local Authorities who provided data on Mobile Phone Blackspots