The UK is within a hair’s breadth of achieving nationwide gigabit-capable broadband. The ongoing rollout has been the most significant and successful infrastructure project in recent memory, and a huge part of that is down to the UK’s broadband providers: over the years, they have invested over £50 billion to upgrade the nation’s communications infrastructure. Thanks to their efforts, nearly 90% of the country can now benefit from infrastructure that is future-proofed for decades to come.
It is therefore an excellent time to be a telecoms customer, with more provider choice, faster speeds, and falling prices. However, a growing and complex web of overlapping regulations risks slowing the industry’s continued expansion.
A view to how far we have come
Fast, resilient connectivity infrastructure is the backbone of the UK economy, a role that will extend even further as digitisation accelerates. Virtually all UK businesses and public sector entities rely on digital connectivity, which is the foundation of all the highlighted growth areas in the Government’s Industrial Strategy. Equally, 78% of people believe that it is important for everyone in the UK to have access to fast, reliable internet, meaning that there is appetite across the board for fast connectivity.
Consumers are enjoying greater access to internet-delivered content than ever before, from streaming TV, to playing online games, to taking video calls as they work from home. And it has never been a better time for them, with a competitive market that consistently delivers better services and lower real terms prices.
Average maximum download speeds have risen from 223 Mbit/s in 2024 to 285 Mbit/s in 2025, all whilst average broadband prices have fallen by 6% in real terms across various speeds in the same period. Switching providers is easy thanks to One Touch Switching, which has resulted in around two million switches since its launch in September 2024.
On top of this, many providers propose heavily discounted “social tariff” tiers, offering reduced price broadband packages to those on a low income. In addition, widespread industry-led digital inclusion initiatives are ongoing, from device donation drives to digital skills training and support for community initiatives.
The contradictions of overlapping regulation
In short: wider coverage, increasing performance, decreasing prices, support for those who need it, and easy switching. So why am I worried?
We find ourselves in the final and most complex stage of the UK’s broadband rollout, as providers look to connect homes and businesses in harder to reach areas, which are often rural. Simultaneously, the market is maturing, with an at times challenging investment landscape, meaning that the regulatory environment will be critical to what happens next. Yet, that regulatory landscape is often cumbersome, due to fragmentation and a rapidly escalating compliance burden.
Providers face a continually evolving set of regulatory conditions and guidance. Currently, there are more than 25 pieces of overlapping regulation and legislation across areas such as data protection, content, security, infrastructure, and consumer protection, with even more obligations being considered in the near future. This is despite the Government’s own Regulation Action Plan, which committed to cutting the administrative burden of regulation by 25% by the end of this parliament.
Going forward, this impact could include a proposed Smart Data Strategy for telecoms, which would impose substantial new systems, compliance and governance costs on providers, when the benefit to consumers is not clear or worth the investment it would take to comply.
Meanwhile, building regulations still act as blockers to the roll out of gigabit-capable broadband. The upcoming Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill grants flat owners the right to request gigabit-capable broadband, but private and social housing tenants are not yet included. Equally, planning regulations for roadworks act as a barrier to rollout, with separate permits required for each road where work is being carried out.
This is only a snapshot. Of course, I want to be clear: all of these issues matter, not least consumer protection and security standards. And the sector has gone further, and collaborated with the Government by signing up to voluntary charters including the Telecoms Consumer Charter, and the Telecoms Fraud Charter.
But regulation that is inconsistent and repetitive will hold back the Government from reaching its ambitious target of nationwide gigabit-capable broadband by 2032. That target requires significant continued private investment, and that investment can only be unlocked if there is persistent confidence in the UK, especially given the inherent long-term nature of the infrastructure we are building.
A regulatory environment that unlocks growth and works for all
What the industry needs is straightforward: clear and proportionate obligations; long-term certainty on key frameworks; explicit recognition of the telecoms sector as a strategic enabler of economic growth; and a commitment that new regulatory requirements will be tested against their impact on investment and innovation before they are introduced.
We have built something genuinely world-class in the UK’s broadband infrastructure. The final mile of that journey is the hardest. This is not the moment to make it harder still.
