UK legislators are set to debate the new Telecommunications Security Bill – which encompasses the new rules on Huawei – at second reading in Parliament.
It was a huge blow to the Chinese telecommunication company Huawei Technologies Co Ltd after the United States banned its services based on security reasons, but it has become a much worse case after the company lost the United Kingdom market. On Monday, Britain outlined a clear roadmap to eliminate Huawei 5G equipment from UK telecommunication carriers by September 30, 2021. Meanwhile, UK carriers have up to the next twelve months to get 5G equipment supplies from Huawei as they seek for alternatives.
Citing security risks, Digital Secretary Oliver Dowden said on Monday the country will no longer have ‘high risk’ vendors supplying 5G equipments from September 30, 2021.
“Today I am setting out a clear path for the complete removal of high risk vendors from our 5G networks,” Dowden said in a statement. “This will be done through new and unprecedented powers to identify and ban telecoms equipment which poses a threat to our national security.”
To facilitate the master plan, Dowden stated that the government has set aside an initial of £250 million ($332 million). Notably, the fund will be channeled to different innovation projects including a secure research facility; the national telecommunication lab.
UK Huawei 5G Ban Bigger Picture
As China revises its trade agreement with different countries, the UK Huawei ban is likely to affect Beijing-London trade relationship and curve a different route.
Apparently, the UK government noted that it intends to diversify on the vendors and not direct attack Huawei. However, prior pressures from the White House to Boris Johnson’s led government to discard existing relationships with Chinese tech firms clearly reveals the underlying issues. In its defense, as it establishes a local telecom lab, the UK government anticipates increasing job creation amid job loss due to the coronavirus market crisis.
“Our plans will spark a wave of innovation in the design of our future mobile networks,” Dowden indicated in the press statement.
Notably, the UK legislators are set to debate the new Telecommunications Security Bill – which encompasses the new rules on Huawei – at second reading in Parliament on Monday.
Under the new telecommunication security bill, UK carriers will be fined up to 10% of their revenues or £100,000 ($133,000) a day if they fail to comply with the rules. Whereby, Communications regulator Ofcom has been mandated to with monitoring UK carries if they adhere to the new set regulations.
Huawei revenue streams are set to shrink if the United States allies adopt the same strategy as the United Kingdom. Meanwhile, smaller UK telecom firms are set to benefit from the Huawei ban in the near future.
“This strategy and financial commitment from the government is good for the industry, and for smaller UK technology firms that will only grow with the right support,” Vodafone CTO Scott Petty said in a statement.
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