British telcos face fines for using Huawei equipment after Chinese tech giant’s ban from 5G networks

Britain’s telcos could be fined up to 10 per cent of turnover or US$133,140 a day if they use Huawei equipment, under a new law put forward on Tuesday

The new bill will boost the security standards of the UK’s telecoms networks and remove the threat of high-risk vendors, the government says

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Huawei has said it is disappointed that the UK government is looking to exclude it from the roll-out of 5G. Photo: Bloomberg

Published: 9:53am, 24 Nov 2020Updated: 9:53am, 24 Nov 2020

Britain’s telecommunications companies could be fined up to 10 per cent of turnover or 100,000 pounds (US$133,140) a day if they contravene a ban on using equipment made by China’s Huawei Technologies Co. under a new law put forward on Tuesday.

The Telecommunications (Security) Bill will boost the security standards of the UK’s telecoms networks and remove the threat of high-risk vendors, the government said.

Britain in July decided to ban the use of Huawei in 5G networks from the end of 2027 because of concerns that US sanctions on chip technology meant the Chinese company would not be a reliable supplier.

The bill aims to enshrine that decision in law and manage any risks from other high-risk vendors in the future, with tough penalties for telecoms companies that break the rules.

Digital secretary Oliver Dowden said the benefits of 5G and fibre networks could only be realised if they were secure and resilient.

“This groundbreaking bill will give the UK one of the toughest telecoms security regimes in the world and allow us to take the action necessary to protect our networks,” he said.

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