Culture Secretary Sajid Javid has announced that mobile networks will be made to improve phone signals in rural areas, At the Conservative Party Conference, Mr Javid criticised the current situation where large areas still only receive poor mobile phone signal and promised to ensure network operators would improve it.

Mr Javid said: "We need to work harder on improving mobile phone coverage, especially in rural areas.

"There are vast swathes of our countryside where you still cannot get a decent mobile signal and that is just not good enough.

"Our mobile operators must do more and I will make sure they do."

Mr Javid also announced that there are plans to improve superfast broadband coverage so that the UK is on a level which is competitive with countries such as Japan and South Korea that have extensive networks.

He said: "We're investing almost £1 billion of Government money to take superfast broadband to 95 per cent of the country by 2017.

"Since 2010 access to superfast broadband has more than doubled and we already have the best broadband coverage of any large European nation.

"But my officials love telling me that we're beating France and Germany but beating them is never enough.

"We need to compete with the likes of Japan and South Korea."