The bill follows on from the Government’s decision to restrict Huawei’s role in the country’s 5G networks.
A bill in the making since July: In July 2020, the UK Government decided that mobile operators will have to phase out the use of certain 5G Huawei equipment by the end of 2027. It also pledged to legislate to introduce a new security framework.
New powers for Ofcom and potentially heavy fines: On 24 November 2020, the Government proposed its Telecoms Security Bill. The bill sets out new duties on operators to protect network security, from design and maintenance of sensitive equipment to governance and audit of their security processes. Ofcom will have new powers to assess operators’ compliance, and enforce sanctions. Companies face fines up to 10% of their turnover, or £100k per day.
Next steps: The bill will now be discussed in Parliament, which could involve amendments being made to the initial draft. Mobile UK, the consortium of UK MNOs, welcomed the bill and pledged to support the new framework. However, MNOs may be unable to use equipment they have stockpiled, due to a new installation ban proposed to come into effect in 2024. This will be part of secondary legislation that will be introduced in the coming weeks. The restriction would put additional pressure on operators’ plans to replace Huawei equipment.
