NIGEL Evans has signed a cross-party letter from MPs to media and digital secretary Matt Hancock, asking for improvements to 4G mobile signals in rural areas to be speeded up.

The document tells him current progress is too slow.

Ribble Valley Tory Mr Evans said: I have no doubts that this is inhibiting growth in the constituency.

"Consumers want to make uninterrupted calls, use data services at home, work and moving across the countryside.

"Possibly most importantly, it will make businesses think twice about setting up base here.

“Anybody who lives in the Ribble Valley will know the utter frustration of having poor phone service and 4G."

The letter calls for a rethink of Ofcom’s statutory obligations to work towards the delivery of universal mobile coverage and a change in transparency rules to prevent operators from hiding behind ‘commercial confidentiality’ to refuse to tell communities where roll outs are planned.