Contributions
582 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDDigital DivideThe hon. Gentleman is absolutely right to highlight the need for that equality of access. The Department continues to work across government to make sure that, whether for…04 Feb 2021HANSARDElectronic Communications Code ConsultationThe Government have ambitious plans to achieve nationwide roll-out of future-proof, gigabit-capable broadband and 5G networks as soon as possible to unlock the huge economic and…27 Jan 2021HANSARDTelecommunications (Security) Bill (Seventh sitting)It is a pleasure to be back under your chairmanship, Mr Hollobone. As we discussed during the debate on amendments to this clause in our previous sitting, clause 6 inserts…26 Jan 2021HANSARDTelecommunications (Security) Bill (Seventh sitting)I will seek to move relatively rapidly through these four clauses. Clause 7 provides Ofcom with enforcement powers in relation to providers’ security duties. The Bill gives Ofcom…26 Jan 2021HANSARDTelecommunications (Security) Bill (Seventh sitting)I welcome the spirit of the amendment. I think that the hon. Lady and I share the same ambition. I know that she wants to have the proper debate later, so we look forward to that.…26 Jan 2021HANSARDTelecommunications (Security) Bill (Seventh sitting)I listen with interest to the points that the hon. Lady makes, and to the assertion that she is a member of the party of national security. I welcome her to this side of the…26 Jan 2021HANSARDTelecommunications (Security) Bill (Seventh sitting)No is the short answer, because while this is a progress report, five years from 2021 is 2026—the deadline is 2027, even at the most extreme end, which is not where we anticipate…26 Jan 2021HANSARDTelecommunications (Security) Bill (Seventh sitting)The hon. Lady asks me to predict what is in a report that has not been written yet by an organisation that is not a Government Department. I agree with the principle of what she…26 Jan 2021HANSARDTelecommunications (Security) Bill (Seventh sitting)I thank the right hon. Gentleman for his contribution to the debate. He has talked so much about my impermanence that I felt lucky to come back today, never mind any time in the…26 Jan 2021HANSARDTelecommunications (Security) Bill (Seventh sitting)I will come on to that. Accepting any of these unilateral amendments to this Bill is not the appropriate place to achieve an overall enhanced role for the ISC—26 Jan 2021HANSARDTelecommunications (Security) Bill (Seventh sitting)In short, the right hon. Gentleman is challenging the fundamental effectiveness of Government and the judgments that were made by officials at the time. I simply say that it is…26 Jan 2021HANSARDTelecommunications (Security) Bill (Seventh sitting)I pre-emptively covered a lot of the hon. Lady’s questions, but I will say two brief things. She talked about consolidation in the cloud sector. While the Bill is very much a…26 Jan 2021HANSARDTelecommunications (Security) Bill (Seventh sitting)The hon. Lady is not wrong, obviously, in the sense that there is a potential conversation to be had about when a cloud provider is a telecoms provider and vice versa, if I can…26 Jan 2021HANSARDTelecommunications (Security) Bill (Seventh sitting)I welcome the second salvo in the campaign to address this matter by the right hon. Member for North Durham. He said it would be an ongoing campaign. This group of amendments…26 Jan 2021HANSARDTelecommunications (Security) Bill (Seventh sitting)Absolutely. Members of the Committee should note that in exercising the powers created by this Bill, the Secretary of State will be advised by the NCSC on relevant technical and…26 Jan 2021HANSARDTelecommunications (Security) Bill (Eighth sitting)It is a pleasure to be back under your chairmanship, Mr McCabe. I will try to rattle through these as quickly as I can. Clauses 18 to 23 cover monitoring and enforcement, and…26 Jan 2021HANSARDTelecommunications (Security) Bill (Eighth sitting)Clause 24 enables higher penalties than those currently set out in the Communications Act 2003 to be issued by Ofcom, and clause 25 makes two necessary consequential amendments to…26 Jan 2021HANSARDTelecommunications (Security) Bill (Eighth sitting)I will be brief, but it is important to cover the Government amendments. The clause provides that any increase in expenditure attributable to the Bill is paid out by Parliament.…26 Jan 2021HANSARDTelecommunications (Security) Bill (Eighth sitting)I thank the hon. Lady for her contributions. To address her central point, it would not be possible for Ofcom to meet the duties Government have tasked it with without addressing…26 Jan 2021HANSARDTelecommunications (Security) Bill (Eighth sitting)Ultimately, a mechanism already exists by which Parliament is able to scrutinise Ofcom’s resourcing. Ofcom is required under the Office of Communications Act 2002 to publish an…26 Jan 2021