BT and Vodafone to lobby government over Huawei ban

Network operators fear higher costs if Huawei is barred from providing 5G and other network hardware in the UK

Vodafone and EE owner BT are to lobby the government over Huawei involvement in the UK's 5G network roll-out, claiming that there is no evidence to justify an outright ban.

The companies believe that the kind of ban that the US is pushing for will slow the roll-out of 5G and stunt the development of the digital economy.

That's according to Sky News, citing ‘telecom industry sources'. It claims that BT CEO Philip Jansen and Vodafone CEO Nick Read are considering writing a joint letter to Prime Minister Boris Johnson, urging him to resist US pressure to shut-out Huawei entirely.

The news comes in the same week that officials from America's National Security Agency (NSA) landed in Britain to persuade UK officials that to allow Huawei to take part in the UK's build-out of 5G would represent a grave security risk.

President Trump will also lobby Johnson directly before Downing Street, finally, makes its decision.

The US has warned that it may have to dial-back on intelligence sharing with allies that allow Huawei hardware to be run at the heart of their telecoms networks. But should the government impose tight restrictions, China's government will almost certainly retaliate. For example, by refusing to consider a post-Brexit trade deal.

China was quick to threaten action against Australia over its ban on Huawei and ZTE from the country's 5G network. The two companies were also barred from supply equipment to run in the country's broadband networks. Former Australian Prime Minster Malcolm Turnbull justified the ban by saying, "threat is capability, plus intent".

The argument against Huawei is based on the threat posed by China's government and the control it exercises throughout China's economy. While Huawei claims that it is independent from China's government and ultimately owned by its trade unions, critics point out that trade unions in China are not independent from government.

Furthermore, China's National Security Law compels individual and companies to comply with any request of the country's security agencies. US authorities contend that this would include compelling a company like Huawei to enable its hardware to be used for covert surveillance purposes.

Companies like EE and Vodafone are keen to use Huawei, despite these claims, because its products are significantly cheaper than 5G hardware from rivals Ericsson and Nokia.

Any ban on Huawei could also mean stripping out the company's products from existing networks, which Huawei has hinted would delay the roll-out of gigabit-capable internet - breaking a pledge by Johnson to provide full-fibre gigabit internet across the UK by 2025.