Ref: 17/01
Date: 20th February 2001

Oftel has opened a consultation on a new edition of the Numbering Conventions, the set of rules and principles covering the use and management of telephone numbers in the UK.

Oftel uses the Conventions to allocate, reserve and withdraw numbers from the National Numbering Scheme.

The Scheme is the list of all numbers allocated or available in the UK which is controlled by Oftel, in accordance with international standards.

The consultation includes a number of proposals for revising the Conventions. These include:

• A new guiding principle that Oftel will allocate numbers on a ‘first come first served’ basis.
• Clarification of which operators are eligible for numbering allocations
• New proposals for managing allocation in ‘conservation areas’ – where numbers are in short supply
• Use of numbers in the ‘07’ range: these should be used for all mobile, paging and personal numbers but not premium rate services.

David Edmonds, Director General of Telecommunications, said:

"The proposed changes will improve Oftel’s stewardship of the vital resource of telephone numbers.

"Oftel is committed to working with the industry and consumers to develop numbering within a clear, transparent and fair framework.

"The Big Number has shown that we can work effectively together on numbering issues. These changes will be developed and implemented in the same spirit."

Following the consultation, Oftel intends to publish a new third issue of the Numbering Conventions later this year.

1 Revising the National Numbering Conventions: proposals to revise and reissue the United Kingdom’s National Numbering Conventions is available from Oftel’s website at www.oftel.gov.uk/publications/numbering/ncon0201.htm. Copies are available to the media from Oftel’s Press office on 020-7634 8991 and to the public from the Research and Intelligence Unit on 020-7634 8761.