FURIOUS residents of a quiet corner of Devon are fighting back against new high-speed mobile networks.

Campaigners in the town of Totnes claim the masts that beam 5G - which promise mobile downloads up to 100 times faster than current tech can provide - pose a serious health hazard.

3 A quiet town in the West Country has persuaded local officials to block the installation of phone masts over health concerns Credit: Reuters

Some scientists have argued that phone masts, which your gadget connects to to make calls and use the internet, can increase cancer rates.

Locals in Totnes have taken matters into their own hands, persuading council members to block the installation of 5G masts by Vodafone, EE, O2 and other networks.

Campaign leader John Kitson says the move by Totnes town council is a warning to ministers that they cannot introduce 5G without further research into its long-term health effects.

It comes just days after Chancellor Sajid Javid announced he was pumping £5billion into government projects to roll out 5G and other high-speed networks to Britain's rural areas.

3 Campaigners in Totnes, Devon, (pictured) claim the masts that beam 5G pose a serious health hazard Credit: Rex Features

"Everyone is talking about how 5G will allow driverless cars, amazing wi-fi speed and the internet of things such as fridges linked to the web," John, 38, told the Daily Mail.

"And yet proper research on this technology has never been carried out.

"Telecom companies, Public Health England, the World Health Organisation – they all say no adverse effects on human health have been established during use of existing 3G and 4G networks.

"But there have been thousands of peer-reviewed scientific papers which raise concerns.

"More than 250 scientists have urged the EU to halt the rollout of 5G because it means a huge increase in electromagnetic radio frequencies on top of the existing network.

"I don’t want to stop the march of technology. I want it made safe."

The ban has no force in planning law, but that hasn't stopped John and his team.

John left his job in the recruitment agency to become a full-time anti-5G campaigner following the death of his mother from a brain tumour.

"Tumours are increasing and it isn’t down to better diagnosis," John said. "There is increasing evidence of a link to high-frequency radiation."

What is 5G? Here's what you need to know... The term 5G stands for 5th-generation, and is simply the next "version" of mobile phone networks.

The world's network operators have settled on a new method of delivering mobile internet to your phone, making it possible to offer far higher download speeds.

Early figures suggest you'll be able to download 4K movies in a matter of seconds, and buffering video will be a thing of the past.

But 5G also promises low "latency" – the physical delay in transmitting data – which is a major boon for gamers, who desperately need their online actions to be sent and received as quickly as possible.

EE is first across the line in the UK, with 5G live in London, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Belfast, Birmingham or Manchester.

The good news is that EE plans to roll out 5G in a further 10 cities by the end of 2019: Glasgow, Newcastle, Liverpool, Leeds, Hull, Sheffield, Nottingham, Leicester, Coventry and Bristol.

Vodafone has also switched on 5G in seven cities: Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Glasgow, Manchester, Liverpool, and London.

His claims that radiation from phone masts cause tumours are backed by some studies, but refuted by others.

The radiation exposure you would get from a mobile pylon is usually at least a hundred times below international guidelines, according to Cancer Research UK.

In June, former digital minister Margot James said "a considerable amount of research has been carried out on radio waves and we anticipate no negative effects on public health".

But campaigners say the effects of masts for 5G, a new high-speed network introduced to the UK this year, are not known.

3 5G promises mobile download speeds up to 100 times faster than current tech can provide Credit: Getty - Contributor

Residents in Totnes are warming to the anti-5G campaign. Around 1,600 have signed up to a petition for more safety research, according to activists.

Campaigner Rosi Gladwell, 70, claims she is sensitive to electro-magnetic waves.

She uses a meter to measure the radiation she's exposed to and even dons an 'anti-sign hood' at sites where she says signals are high.

She said: "There is huge concern about this technology. No one is being properly informed.

"We are immensely grateful to town councillors for approving the moratorium. It takes a lot of courage to stand up to government."

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In other news, Vodafone switched on its 5G network in July.

Here are the super-fast 5G phones you can buy right now.

And, here's how to tell if you have 5G in your area.

Are you worried about 5G masts? Let us know in the comments!

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