Spending Review 2020 and communications infrastructure
While the dust may have settled from the 2020 Spending Review delivered on 25 November, questions remain. What is the meaning of the government’s change in position with regards to the 2025 target of gigabit-capable coverage for all, and revised spending profile for the Outside In programme?
Setting out the SR20 plans, the Chancellor of the Exchequer focused on jobs, infrastructure and innovation to support the economic recovery from COVID-19. For the tech sector there were a number of key announcements, including several public/private partnership initiatives driven by a new set of Government institutions and funds.
For the telecommunications industry, the long-awaited National Infrastructure Strategy (NIS)—published alongside SR20 — included a welcome investment to support the 5G Supply Chain Diversification Strategy, with £50m being delivered in 2021, as well as £200 million for UK-wide digital infrastructure programmes; including the Shared Rural Network for 4G coverage, Local Full Fibre Networks, and the 5G Testbeds and Trials Programme.
The telecoms sector was further encouraged by Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s introduction to the NIS with the view that “in a world likely to be working less from the office, our massive gigabit-capable broadband programme looks more important than ever.”
So far, so good?
The spending profile of DCMS’s multi-year capital programme — delivered by Building Digital UK and underpinned by the “Outside In” approach — revealed that just £1.2 billion of the government’s £5 billion commitment would be deployed between 2021-22 to 2024-25 to support the rollout of gigabit-capable broadband across the UK. The NIS itself was the clearest indicator of the government’s position: 85% of gigabit-capable coverage by 2025, and only 5% of that is government subsidised.
The disappointment felt by many in the UK’s telecoms sector was the loss of ambition for 100% gigabit by 2025, although the NIS stressed that government will seek to to accelerate roll-out further to get as close to that original target as possible, including an ambitious furtherprogramme of work to remove barriers to broadband deployment to maximise coverage in the hardest to reach areas of the country.
The devil is in the detail
Perhaps HM Treasury is rightly impressed with the pace of gigabit and full fibre rollout delivered by the private sector to date, and will provide the much needed strategic direction and practical help to enable this to continue. Despite the challenges of COVID-19 and lockdown restrictions, that pace of rollout has not abated in 2020.
Yet the £5 billion for “Outside In” was a vital aid to ensuring the pace of rollout can be matched in the final 20% of the UK for which commercially, deployment is not viableis commercially unviable. Mark Bridgeman, President of the Country Land and Business Association, has sought assurance from Minister for Digital Infrastructure Matt Warman following the announcement, “so that uncommercial areas can benefit from the outside-in approach and we can go some way in bridging the productivity gap that exists between rural and urban areas”.
techUK will continue to work with members and stakeholders to push government to bring as much of the funding forward (or should that be back) into the timeframe. Industry and government can collaborate effectively to tackle the connectivity challenges the UK faces, as the SRN programme attests. If the UK can rapidly recover from the pandemic, and deliver on promises for jobs, productivity and prosperity, the ambition for connectivity for all should not be adjusted.
Sophie Greaves
Sophie Greaves
Sophie Greaves is Associate Director for Digital Infrastructure at techUK, overseeing the Communications Infrastructure and Services Programme at techUK, and the UK Spectrum Policy Forum.
Sophie was promoted to Head having been Programme Manager for Communications Infrastructure and Services, leading techUK's telecoms activities, engagement and policy development. Previously, Sophie was Programme Assistant across a variety of areas including the Broadband Stakeholder Group, Central Government, Financial Services and Communications Infrastructure programmes.
Prior to joining techUK, Sophie completed a masters in Film Studies at University College London; her dissertation examined US telecoms policy relating to net neutrality and content distribution.
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- https://www.linkedin.com/in/sophiegreaves/
Phil Reid
Phil Reid
Phil is acting Head of Telecoms and Spectrum policy at techUK, where he leads the Communications, Infrastructure and Services Programme. This focuses on promoting the benefits and innovations of connectivity and tackles the barriers of digital infrsatructre rollout.
Phil's background lies in public affairs and policy, supporting numerous organisations to navigate their policy landscape, build their political profile and engage on key issues with impact. His previous roles were predominantly in consultancy but he has also had extensive experience in establishing and manging both trade bodies and campaign groupings; leading their secretariat functions as well as their public affairs and communications activities.
Telecoms has been an ever-constant sector focus during his career, covering an array of issues such as IP-migration, broadband rollout, net neutrality, telecoms fraud, network resilience and security. He has a strong understanding of the sector ecosytem, its major policy issues and has had plenty of interaction with its key stakeholders.
Outside of work, if he's not enjoying family time with his wife and two daughters, he'll be either playing or watching some form of sport.
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Tales Gaspar
Tales Gaspar
Tales has a background in law and economics, with previous experience in the regulation of new technologies and infrastructure.
In the UK and Europe, he offered consultancy on intellectual property rights of cellular and IoT technologies and on the regulatory procedures at the ITU as a Global Fellow at the European Space Policy Institute (ESPI).
Tales has an LL.M in Law and Business by the Getulio Vargas Foundation (FGV) and an MSc in Regulation at the London School of Economics, with a specialization in Government and Law.
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- www.techUK.org
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- www.linkedin.com/in/talesngaspar
Josh Turpin
Josh Turpin
Josh joined techUK as a Programme Manager for Telecoms and Net Zero in August 2024.
In this role, working jointly across the techUK Telecoms and Climate Programmes, Josh is responsible for leading on telecoms infrastructure deployment and uptake and supporting innovation opportunities, as well as looking at how the tech sector can be further utilised in the UK’s decarbonisation efforts.
Prior to joining techUK, Josh’s background was in public affairs and communications, working for organisations across a diverse portfolio of sectors including defence, telecoms and infrastructure; aiding clients through stakeholder engagement, crisis communications, media outreach as well as secretariat duties.
Outside of work, Josh has a keen interest in music, painting and sailing.
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- [email protected]
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- 020 7331 2038
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- https://www.linkedin.com/in/josh-turpin/