A PETITION calling on BT to stop transitioning to a ‘fully digital’ approach has reached 600 signatures from rural residents in County Durham who say they could be left “isolated” if a repeat of power shortages seen in Storm Arwen happens in the future.

Large parts of the region were plunged into darkness at the end of November last year when torrential rain and high winds of Storm Arwen battered the North East – leaving power cables downed, property damaged, and trees felled.

During the emergency, some residents were able to communicate with Northern Powergrid with their landline devices; acting as a lifeline for many that lived in smaller communities or those that were vulnerable.

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Following the crisis, it was announced by BT that traditional landlines would be making way for internet-enabled devices by the end of 2025 – meaning that everyone in England would need internet during the next three years.

However, this revelation by the telecoms giant has not gone down well in County Durham, where some believe that it could be “dangerous” to cut the supply of traditional landlines in favour of the new piece of technology from BT.

This is because those that had moved over to the new ‘Digital Voice’ programme were left without phone service for the duration of the power shortage – with some even left for up to 12 days.

The Northern Echo: BT announced at the end of last year that 'Digital Voice' would be rolled out by December 2025.BT announced at the end of last year that 'Digital Voice' would be rolled out by December 2025.

As a result, a petition was created by Weardale resident, Malcolm Read, who, like many others, was impacted when power outages came along last year.

Starting the petition at the end of December, Mr Read hoped to get a handful of signatures and “take the fight” to BT on the matter.

But, several weeks on, the petition and Mr Read’s localised campaign has managed to reach 600 people, with the Weardale man now planning to submit the petition to BT.

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While Mr Read thinks that digital technology has its benefits, he also believes that it should be a choice made by residents for whether they should make the switch.

He said: “The digital rollout is a wonderful thing, but at times of a crisis, we need to be sure that we can summon help.

“When the electricity fails, it is worrying enough, but to not have any means of communication whatsoever, a calamity can quickly turn into a disaster and offering battery packs does not help when the battery lasts an hour and the power outage over a week.”

The Northern Echo: In Storm Arwen at the end of last year, that saw homes left without power, residents with 'Digital Voice' couldn't use their phones, which has sparked some concerns.In Storm Arwen at the end of last year, that saw homes left without power, residents with 'Digital Voice' couldn't use their phones, which has sparked some concerns.

The battery packs that Mr Read cites stems from a suggestion from BT that they would offer people battery packs in the future if they were in a power outage. This is one of several suggestions made by the company as a ‘compromise’ to those that are refusing to make the ‘digital leap’.

As well as waiting on BT to respond to the petition, Mr Read has sent the online document to North West Durham MP, Richard Holden, to see if the representative can “fight the corner of his constituents”.

After contacting Mr Holden about the petition, he told The Northern Echo: “I fully understand my constituent concerns on this issue and have already raised it with the relevant ministers and BT.

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“Storm Arwen raised many different concerns, from the resilience of the power network to connectivity – including landline and mobile phone coverage – through to local resilience planning.

“I will be following this matter closely, to ensure that my constituents, especially in emergency circumstances, are always able to access help when they need it.”

A spokesperson for BT added: “We are urgently reviewing whether customers due to being upgraded to Digital Voice live in mobile not-spots. If they are, we are looking to pause their upgrades.

The Northern Echo: BT has confirmed that it's looking into alternatives and how to protect rural residents that could be isolated in an emergency BT has confirmed that it's looking into alternatives and how to protect rural residents that could be isolated in an emergency

“In tandem, we are reviewing alternative technologies that could provide connectivity in mobile not-spots during a power outage.

“In the meantime, emergency calls can be made on any mobile network available. If you’re a Vodafone customer but have no signal, you can still call 999 over an available EE / Three / O2 service where there is one.”

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