Today Terminate the Rate – the campaign to have unfair Mobile Termination Rates lowered will hand a petition of 114,259 signatures to industry regulator Ofcom asking for it to reduce the cost of calling mobiles.

The campaign - that hopes to see MTRs reduced to reflect what they actually cost - is supported by more than 60 organisations. The issue of MTRs was initially brought into the public domain by 3 and BT in May and since then the campaign has gathered significant support. Businesses, unions, charities, local governments and consumers alike have all backed Terminate the Rate in challenging the status quo with the goal of bringing MTRs down from about 5p a minute to around a penny or less.

Alongside this, 258 MPs signed an Early Day Motion (EDM) asking for a reduction in MTRs. This makes it one of the most supported EDMs on the parliamentary books.

On the submission John Petter, MD Consumer, BT Retail, said:

“114,000 people, 258 MPs and more than 60 organisations, businesses and councils have all joined the campaign for MTRs to be cut to a penny or less. Any reduction less than this will mean continued unfairness and high prices for UK consumers and businesses.

“This petition is only the first stage in an ongoing campaign to show how MTRs stifle competition and increase the cost of calling mobiles - our goal remains for them to be set according to what they actually cost.”

Already the European Commission has recommended that MTRs are addressed with a mind to setting them lower, recognising that they currently penalise consumers and stifle competition. The submission of the Terminate the Rate petition will further emphasise to Ofcom the need for the current practice to change, a change that will benefit everyone whenever they call a mobile phone.

To read more on today’s submission go to either of the articles at the BBC or The Independent, both of which cover this latest milestone in the Terminate the Rate campaign.