Huawei will be completely removed from the UK’s 5G networks by the end of 2027, the government said on July 14 following new advice produced by the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) on the impact of US sanctions against the telecommunications vendor.
As per the decision, the UK’s mobile providers are being banned from buying new Huawei 5G equipment after 31 December, and they must also remove all the Chinese firm’s 5G kit from their networks by 2027, Digital Secretary Oliver Dowden told the House of Commons.
It follows sanctions imposed by Washington, which claims the firm poses a national security threat.
“By the time of the next election, we will have implemented in law an irreversible path for the complete removal of Huawei equipment from our 5G networks,” Dowden said adding that the supply ban would delay the UK’s 5G rollout by a year.
The 5G technology promises faster internet speeds and the capacity to support more wireless devices, which should be a boon to everything from mobile gaming to higher-quality video streams, and even in time driverless cars that talk to each other.
Dowden said that 5G will be transformative for our country, but “only if we have confidence in the security and resilience of the infrastructure it is built upon”.
“Following US sanctions against Huawei and updated technical advice from our cyber experts, the government has decided it is necessary to ban Huawei from our 5G networks,” he added.
Because the US sanctions only affect future equipment, the government has been advised there is no security justification for removing 2G, 3G and 4G equipment supplied by Huawei.
New restrictions will also apply to use of the company’s broadband kit.
Operators are being told they should “transition away” from purchasing new Huawei equipment for use in full-fibre networks, ideally within the next two years.
Dowden said the government would “embark on a short technical consultation” with industry leaders about this.