has announced that it will cut the phone signal within the tiny city state during the conclave to elect a new pope – but this would not affect St Peter’s Square.

The office of the presidency of the Governorate of the Vatican City State said that “all the transmission systems of the telecommunications signal for mobile telephones present in the territory of the Vatican City State … will be deactivated” from 3pm on 7 May.

“The signal will be restored after the announcement of the election of the supreme pontiff,” it said in a statement.

But the deactivation will not cover St Peter’s Square, Vatican spokesperson Matteo Bruni told reporters.