MOBILE phone and internet connection is not so much a luxury these days but is essential to modern life.

From schoolchildren being set homework online, to businesses being open to customers via the worldwide web, having a fast and reliable internet connection is something most people take for granted.

Unfortunately not so for those living in remote parts of the Yorkshire Dales.

Mobile phone signal is patchy or non-existent and the same goes for the internet.

What a shame then that a new mast roll-out scheme to improve communications for the emergency services may not benefit residents or visitors at all because the ‘wrong’ sort of poles are being proposed.

It is all well and good announcing grand plans and schemes to attract and retain young Dales families, but it is important to get the simple things right too.

Erecting a lattice pole instead of a monopole could vastly improve connectivity in the area by allowing numerous providers to utilise it.

Yet in some cases, lattice poles have been rejected on visual grounds or not even been proposed in the first place.

People who choose to live in rural areas understand that they will not benefit from the services and amenities found in towns and cities - indeed getting away from the hustle and bustle can be a prime reason people chose a rural life.

But that should not mean being deprived of something as vital as internet connection - particularly when all it takes is one pole over another.