A communications apparatus within a wireless terminal, said apparatus comprising: means for operating said wireless terminal, at different times, in each one of three different operational states, the three different operational states including a first state, a second state and a third state, means for operating the wireless terminal in the first state including means for using a first amount of a control communications resource to communicate control information between said wireless terminal and a base station and means for performing, using some of said first amount of a control communications resource, transmission power control signaling operations at a first rate and transmission timing control signaling operations at a second rate lower than the first rate, wherein transmission power control signaling operations are operations for controlling the transmission power of the wireless terminal, and wherein transmission timing control signaling operations are operations for controlling the transmission timing of the wireless terminal; means for operating the wireless terminal in the second state including means for using a second amount of the control communications resource to communicate control information between said wireless terminal and the base station and means for performing, using some of said second amount of the control communications resource, transmission timing control signalling operations at a third rate that is equal to or lower than the second rate and transmission power control signaling operations also at said third rate, means for operating the wireless terminal in the third state including means for using less of the control communications resource than is used by the wireless terminal in either of the first or second states, and means for operating the wireless terminal to transition from one of said first and second states to said third state, the means for operating the wireless terminal to transition from one of said first and second states to said third state including means for reducing, in response to said transition, the rate of transmission power control signaling operation. means for operating said wireless terminal, at different times, in each one of three different operational states, the three different operational states including a first state, a second state and a third state, means for operating the wireless terminal in the first state including means for using a first amount of a control communications resource to communicate control information between said wireless terminal and a base station and means for performing, using some of said first amount of a control communications resource, transmission power control signaling operations at a first rate and transmission timing control signaling operations at a second rate lower than the first rate, wherein transmission power control signaling operations are operations for controlling the transmission power of the wireless terminal, and wherein transmission timing control signaling operations are operations for controlling the transmission timing of the wireless terminal; means for operating the wireless terminal in the second state including means for using a second amount of the control communications resource to communicate control information between said wireless terminal and the base station and means for performing, using some of said second amount of the control communications resource, transmission timing control signalling operations at a third rate that is equal to or lower than the second rate and transmission power control signaling operations also at said third rate, means for operating the wireless terminal in the third state including means for using less of the control communications resource than is used by the wireless terminal in either of the first or second states, and means for operating the wireless terminal to transition from one of said first and second states to said third state, the means for operating the wireless terminal to transition from one of said first and second states to said third state including means for reducing, in response to said transition, the rate of transmission power control signaling operation.