Political Monitor 14/02/2020

14 February 2020

[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”3.22″][et_pb_row _builder_version=”3.25″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”3.25″ custom_padding=”|||” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.27.4″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”]

Cabinet Reshuffle

Boris Johnson held his first major reshuffle of cabinet which saw a number of significant changes. Rishi Sunak has become the new Chancellor whilst Priti Patel, Dominic Raab, Michael Gove, Liz Truss, Matt Hancock, Gavin Williamson and Jacob Rees-Mogg have all retained their positions. Anne-Marie Trevelyan, George Eustice, Amanda Milling and Suella Braverman have all joined the cabinet.

 

Broadband

Oral Question on funding rural broadband for businesses

Flick Drummond MP (Con) asked the previous Chancellor of the Exchequer, Sajid Javid, what funding was in place to improve broadband to businesses in rural areas. Javid responded that the Government has a gigabit broadband voucher scheme and rural gigabit connectivity scheme in place which is available to small and medium-sized enterprises giving up to £3,500 to each company. He also highlighted the Government’s £5billiion investment commitment for new infrastructure to facilitate broadband.

Oral Questions on broadband rollout

Matt Warman, Minister for Broadband, orally answered questions on broadband from Robert Courts MP (Con), Gagan Mohindra MP (Con), David Duguid (Con), Miss Sarah Dines (Con), Alan Brown MP (SNP), Kevin Brennan MP (Lab), Jeff Smith MP (Lab) and Shadow Digital Minister Chi Onwurah MP. Warman highlighted the legislation in Parliament demonstrated a real commitment to deliver gigabit-capable networks from the Government and highlighted the £5billion funding for hard-to-reach areas.

Written Questions on broadband rollout

Warman responded to written questions from Chi Onwurah MP, Alan Brown MP and Gregory Campbell MP (DU). Warman confirmed that Government was yet to announce the content of the legislation to deliver gigabit-capable connections to new build developments. He also emphasised the Universal Service Obligation coming into effect on 20th March giving individuals the right to request broadband up to a reasonable cost threshold.
Warman reiterated that the Telecommunications Infrastructure (Leasehold Property) Bill will help operators connect leasehold properties where landlords fail to respond to access requests. This supports the rollout of broadband through private investment. He also cited Ofcom’s Connected Nations report which revealed that full-fibre broadband coverage for residential premises was at 10% for the whole of the UK, as of September 2019. This was 8% for Scotland, 12% for Wales and 10% for England.
The written questions from Alan Brown MP can be found here, here, here and here.

Online Safety

Government Response to Online Harms White Paper

The DCMS has responded to the Online Harms White Paper consultation that ran in spring 2019. The new powers will bring companies that ‘facilitate the sharing of user generated content’ into scope and Government is ‘minded’ to appoint Ofcom as the online harms regulator. Further detail on the exact enforcement powers that Ofcom will have and how they will exercise their powers will be announced in the spring – including on ISP blocking.

It is noted that Internet Service Providers emphasised the importance of developing regulation in alignment with wider technical developments such as encryption which could undermine website blocking. The Government has also noted the request for a transition period to adjust to or implement the new regulations without threat of severe sanctions. The legislation would only apply to companies “providing services or using functionality on their websites which facilitate the sharing of user generated content or user interactions, through comments, forums or videos”.

ISPA’s comments on the Government’s Online Harms White Paper Consultation response

Andrew Glover commented:
“The White Paper outlines important steps towards maintaining and improving trust in online services and the wider digital economy. ISPA’s consumer facing members have been instrumental in making the UK one of the safest places in the world to be online by providing customers with safety and security tools, so ISPA is broadly supportive of the white paper’s agenda.

“However, in order to effectively address online harms, it is important for interventions to be targeted at the specific part of the internet ecosystem, so we welcome the proposed approach of focusing measures on platforms that facilitate user generated content.

“There are a number of important questions that remain unanswered – especially in a post-Brexit environment – such as how Ofcom will use its new powers, how a regulator would deal with companies not based in the UK and ISP blocking – including how the UK reacts to technical developments such as DNS-over-HTTPS. ISPA will be working with its members on these and other points as we enter the next phase of consultation.”

Written question on funding for the UK Safer Internet Centre

Mr Simon Clarke MP, who was the Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury until his appointment as Minister of State at the Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government in the reshuffle, responded to Carolyn Harris MP (Lab) on the funding for the UK Safer Internet Centre. He wrote that the UK is still open to participation in certain EU programmes and it is in the UK’s interest to continue to engage with the European Unions Connecting Europe Facility. However, participation in the programme will be subject to future negotiations.

Written Question on Internet Safety

Lord Foster of Bath filed a written question asking what assessment the Government had made to introduce online harms legislation if safe harbour provisions form part of the free trade agreement with the US. The Earl of Courtown responded that the Government is committed to making the UK the safest place to be online and will consider safety when negating any trade agreement.

Cyber Security

Written questions on Huawei

Bob Seely MP (Con) asked multiple questions on Huawei and their involvement in the provision of 5G to the UK. Matt Warman responded to the questions emphasised the full consideration that had gone into the Governments final decision on Huawei assessing the full range of threats and risks using recommendations from the NCSC which underpinned the conclusions of the Governments’ Telecoms Supply Chain Review.
The full responses can be found here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here.

Written Question on artificial intelligence in cybercrime

Oliver Dowden responded to a question from Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi MP (Lab) on whether the Government  had plans to update the National Cyber Security Strategy on the use of artificial intelligence.  Dowden responded that the Government was committed to investing more in cyber security and embracing new technologies. The Government’s future approach to cybersecurity will form part of the Integrated Security, Defence and Foreign Policy Review.

Ofcom

Appointment of new CEO

Dame Melanie Dawes has been appointed the new CEO of Ofcom following the resignation of Sharon White last year. Dawes will join Ofcom next month from the Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government where she has been Permanent Secretary since 2015. She has worked for various Government departments across her thirty-year career, and has held non-executive roles including at Which?, the consumer body.

European Update

European Commission publish 2020 work programme

On 29 January, the European Commission published its annual Work Programme, detailing its ambitions in terms of legislative and non-legislative initiatives for the year. Several foreseen proposals and communications are highly relevant for EuroISPA. The Digital Services Act, expected for Q4 2020, will review the existing EU intermediary liability framework. In addition, after a number of non-legislative initiatives, the EU intends to put forward binding rules for Artificial Intelligence in Q4 2020. Furthermore, the European Commission will also propose a legislative review of the NIS Directive. When it comes to data, the EU’s executive plans to publish a European Data Strategy, to increase access to and use of data.

ISPA Events

Cyber Security Working Group

The first ISPA Cyber Security Working Group meeting of 2020 is taking place on the afternoon of Wednesday March 18th from 2-5pm at ISPA’s offices, 69 Wilson Street, EC2A 2BB.
The meeting will include an update on the various live cyber security policy initiatives, plan ISPA activity and feature speakers from our partners SonicWall.
A full agenda will be sent round in due course but will include the following:

SonicWall demonstration of Managed Security Services and how to grow your customer base
This event is for ISPA members only, if you wish to attend, please RSVP to admin@ispa.org.uk

Distributed Core Network and Network Automation Workshop with DCN Professional Solutions.

The Distributed Core Network and Network Automation Workshop will be taking place on 31st March from 1pm to 5pm (with lunch and refreshments) in ISPA offices, 69 Wilson street, London, EC2A 2BB, this workshop is aimed at CTOs, Network Service Engineers, and Product Managers. During this workshop our partners Salumanus will suggest solutions to obtain a network architecture that provides seamless connectivity. They will take a closer look at each level of Distributed Core Network and show how different network faults are dealt with by Network Automation mechanisms inside and between switches. Their Wavelength Division Multiplexing will also give you an overview on how to use this technology to implement Distributed Core Network as well as provide seamless connectivity with your existing network infrastructure. They will suggest where else in your network you could benefit from WDM advantages.
This workshop is free to attend, please RSVP to admin@ispa.org.uk to secure your place.

ISPA Conference

Save the date for the ISPA Conference and AGM – The annual general meeting and ISPA Conference is taking place on the afternoon of 12th May in the offices of Bird & Bird LLP in London.
The agenda is being finalised at the moment but ISPA members can already register for their free tickets here. If you would like to participate in the sessions please contact admin@ispa.org.uk

 
[/et_pb_text][/et_pb_column][/et_pb_row][/et_pb_section]