'These massive masts are like a middle finger to the community'

MPs IN CALL FOR ACTION OVER 5G TOWERS PUT UP OUTSIDE HOMES

- By ROB PARSONS

"IMAGINE someone sitting in the house they have worked hard for, where they are raising their children and where they have put down roots," Oldham MP Jim McMahon told his Westminster colleagues.

"The proposal is to erect a 15-metre mast outside. In context, that is the height of four double-decker buses stacked on top of one another. The cabinets that go alongside them are as tall as a standing adult."

That's the reality of what people across Greater Manchester have been facing in recent months as telecoms giants install huge pieces of broadband infrastructure without asking permission from locals first.

As the Labour MP told a Westminster Hall debate last week, firms like BT, Vodafone and IX Wireless are not breaking the law. Changes to planning rules in 2019 mean masts under 15 metres tall can be installed under 'permitted development' without prior permission from the local authority.

In Mr McMahon's Oldham West and Royton seat it seems the worst offender is IX Wireless, a Blackburn firm which hit the headlines last year for donating more than £138,000 to 24 Conservative MPs. IX Wireless say they have worked hard to engage with communities, and ensure 'residents' needs are met.