Political Monitor 23/10/2020

23 October 2020

Broadband

Warman gives evidence on Broadband and the road to 5G

DCMS Minister Matt Warman MP was in front of the DCMS Committee as part of their enquiry into Broadband and the Road to 5G. Committee members were particularly interested in questions which focused on the 2025 target. Some key points from the evidence session include:

• Warman accepted the target was a difficult challenge. He added that COVID made the target higher, but that reforms on building regulations and the electronic communications code would make action towards the target easier.
• On a scale of one to ten of how likely the target would be met, Warman said he was not prepared to put a number on it.
• On starting with the most rural areas, Warman said this was part of the Government’s levelling-up agenda. Asked whether the worst areas for connection would see a difference, Warman said procurement would be key.
• Asked when the identification of the 20% worst hit areas would be published, Warman said deciding the size of areas to focus on and categories would be the time-consuming parts. He said it would be a “centrally driven programme” but would rely on local knowledge and expertise.
• On the UK’s poor ranking on gigabyte coverage, Warman said the rate in which the UK was improving meant it was “going in the right direction”. He said the UK was at the top of rankings in other areas than connectivity coverage.
• On how to ensure individuals would not be priced out of broadband in future, Warman said DCMS played a role in the implementation of making certain pricing available to certain income groups
• On whether the business rate exemptions for new fibre broadband would be extended beyond 2022, Warman said he was sympathetic towards industry’s arguments but that this was a matter for the Treasury.

Written question on Gigabit capability

Esther McVey MP (Con) asked how much of the UK has one gigabit capability; and what assessment has been made of the geographical distribution of one gigabit capability in towns, cities and rural areas. DCMS Minister Matt Warman MP highlighted the location of statistics on urban and rural premises (see here) and said that according to Thinkbroadband, 27.2% of the UK have access to gigabit capable speeds, up from 0.9% in 2016. A full list of Gigabit availability by area can be found here.

Cyber Security

Committee to question Ofcom and the National Cyber Security Centre

The Science and Technology Committee have announced their fifth evidence session as part of its inquiry into UK telecommunications infrastructure and the UK’s domestic capability. The evidence session will take place on Wednesday 28^th October. The Committee will hear from a number of witnesses on a range of subjects. These include the Chair of the recently established Telecoms Diversification Taskforce who will discuss the taskforce’s role and the key aspects of the forthcoming diversification strategy. Following this Ofcom and the National Cyber Security Centre will give evidence on market diversity and telecommunications security in the UK.

Written question on Huawei

Shadow DCMS Minister Chi Onwurah MP (Lab) asked what estimate DCMS has made of the cost of removing Huawei from the 5G network; and how they plan to fund that removal.  DCMS Minister Matt Warman MP replied that It will be for individual operators to determine how to remove Huawei equipment from their networks by 2027, and that the exact nature of any costs and delays would be a commercial decision for each operator to make.

Written question on 5G

Shadow DCMS Minister Chi Onwurah MP (Lab) asked what steps DCMS is taking to increase investment in OpenRAN technology and vendor diversification in the UK’s 5G network. DCMS Minister Matt Warman MP replied saying the Government wanted to make Open RAN widely available across the sector so that operators can have the flexibility to use multiple suppliers throughout their network, rather than being over-reliant on one or two. He continued that DCMS are prioritising the testing of Open RAN through the existing 5G Testbeds and Trials Programme. The Government would also be publishing its targeted 5G supply chain diversification strategy focused on rebalancing the telecommunications supply chain in the coming weeks. The Diversification Taskforce will also provide advice to the Government.

Written question on 5G coverage

Virendra Sharma MP (Lab) asked what proportion of households and land area have 5G coverage. DCMS Minister Matt Warman replied that all four Mobile Network Operators have launched 5G networks, with 5G services now available in over 100 towns and cities across the UK. Warman was unable to give exact data as Ofcom does not currently report on 5G coverage figures.

Online Safety

Written question on online harms

Liberal Democrat Education Spokesperson Daisy Cooper MP asked DCMS what discussions they’ve had with Ofcom on the role of the proposed online harms regulator to promote education and raise awareness of online safety. DCMS Minister Caroline Dinenage MP replied that DCMS have regular meetings and discussions with Ofcom on a variety of issues, including online media literacy education. Dinenage continued that the forthcoming full Government Response to the Online Harms White Paper Consultation will set out more detail about the online harms regulator’s role in promoting media literacy education.

Subgroup news

Please find an update on our ongoing policy work below

Liability

• ISPA held a liability call with members to discuss topics including the upcoming online harms legislation and ongoing work on DoH and filtering and blocking.

Broadband

• ISPA submitted a gigatag consultation response and continue to attend gigatag meetings with officials.

ISPA events

ISPA Awards Online Ceremony

You are invited to the 22nd annual ISPA Awards ceremony, which will take place on a very engaging online platform on Wednesday 18th November from 4.30pm-5.30pm. Please add this date to your diaries and RSVP to awards@ispa.org.uk if you would like to secure your free ticket. More information will be revealed soon but rest assured that although we can’t meet in person this year, we will make the ceremony exciting and fun as always. Keep your eyes peeled for future announcements!