ONE of the world’s leading communications companies has announced it will be pausing its Digital Voice plans - after concerns were raised about the effect of the total switchover from analogue on certain groups.

BT had previously announced a new home phone service, which would mean calls are made over its new broadband network, rather than the old analogue network which is over 40 years old.

Put simply, instead of plugging a home phone into a wall-mounted phone socket as people have done for decades, customers would connect their handset to their broadband router.

Andover councillor Iris Andersen was one of the people who expressed concerns about the proposed move.

She said : “It's certainly not caring about the customers who have been with them for years. What happens to customers in the country, where there is less signal?"

Cllr Iris Andersen added that older residents, who may choose not to have internet in their homes, would also be left disadvantaged.

READ MORE: BT landline cut "such a shame" says councillor Iris Andersen

Announcing the pause on rollout of the switch-over, Marc Allera, CEO of the consumer division at BT, said: “It is, in short, a necessary upgrade to customers’ phones in their homes that will bring long term benefits and a service fit for the future.

“However, we underestimated the disruptive impact this upgrade would have on some of our customers. With hindsight we went too early, before many customers – particularly those who rely more heavily on landlines – understood why this change is necessary and what they needed to do.

“We also recognise we have more work to do on getting better back-up solutions in place for when things disrupt the service like storms and power cuts.

“We got this part of our programme wrong and for that, we’re sorry.”

He continued: “We have listened to our customers’ concerns and we have more work to do to improve the resilience of the network, working with energy providers on faster power restoration and providing better back-up solutions for customers.

“Digitising the UK’s future is a national mission, and we’re determined to get it right. So, we are pausing all further Digital Voice switch-overs for customers who don’t want to move to the new technology straight away.”

There are some customers for whom our Digital Voice rollout will continue. This includes those using the Fibre Voice Access broadband package, which means they receive voice services over their fibre broadband. This is a legacy product which needs to be upgraded to Digital Voice.

The CLA – which in the South East represents thousands of farmers, landowners and rural businesses in Kent, Hampshire, Surrey, Sussex, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and the Isle of Wight – has welcomed the news, but warned many rural communities across the region are still suffering a connectivity divide.

Regional director Tim Bamford said: “We are pleased that BT has listened to our calls to scrap plans to remove traditional landlines from homes and businesses.

“With many areas still struggling to receive basic mobile and internet connectivity, landlines continue to be a lifeline for many people in isolated communities.

“The answer to this is simple. If BT wants to scrap landlines in the long term, it needs to ensure every single part of the country is fully connected.

“Sadly, this aspiration feels a long way away for many rural communities. We call on BT to redouble their efforts to ensure full coverage for the nation, so that the social and economic benefits of modern technology can be felt in every village and every household.”

Cllr Andersen added: “I’m really glad they have listed, but [during the Storms] I couldn’t believe what I was seeing! It’s not good enough in this day in age.”

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