The Week UK 01Feb2020

6 NEWS Politics

THEWEEK1February 2020

Controversy of the week

The Huawei dilemma

Boris Johnson hasmadea“generation-defining error”,said

Nick Timothy in The Daily Telegraph. This week, the National

SecurityCouncil, whichthe PM heads, decidedtoallow

Huaweiacrucial rolein the development of Britain’s

5G network.Thistechnology is not, as some seem to think,

“simply the next generationfor mobilephones”. Its wireless

networks will be “attheheartofeverything wedo foryearsto

come”.5Gwilltransform“homes,hospitals, farms, factories,

citiesandutilitygrids”–supporting everythingfromsmart

householddevicesand virtual-reality entertainment to

autonomous cars and remote surgery. It will turnpersonal data

intothe “world’s most important commodity”. That’s why

Tuesday’s decision, announced after months of debate, presents

sucha“veryserious threat”. By permittingaChinesefirmwith

closelinks to the People’sLiberation Armytobuild large parts

of our5Gnetwork,weare invitinga“Chinese fox intothehenhouse”. Themoverisks “exposing

British companies to the theft of intellectual property, British governments to geopolitical blackmail”.

ManyTories opposedthe move,saidDan Sabbagh in TheGuardian–including Johnson’s Defence

Secretary, BenWallace.But it wasa“sensiblecompromise”betweensecurity concerns and“theneed

forafast and affordableroll-out of 5G”. Huaweihas been providing telecoms technology to Britain

for15years, andUKspyagencies firmly believe that any risks can be mitigated. It hasbeenexcluded

fromsupplying“core” partsof 5G infrastructure–the servers and software that actually handle data

–and restricted to antennaeand base stations, inwhich it istheworld leader. Butgiving the green

light to Huaweiwill“come atacost”, said Francis Elliottin TheTimes. TheUSvocally opposedthe

decision,arguing thatChinacould useitasabackdoorforcyberattacks.WhiteHouse officialshave

suggesteditcould jeopardiseboth US-UKtradetalksand Britain’smembership of the“five eyes”

intelligence-sharing groupof countries(alsoincluding Australia, Canada andNewZealand).

Johnson hasshownthathe is not DonaldTrump’s poodle–but there may be“consequences”.

Thiswasa“pragmatic”decision,butnot avery satisfactoryone, said The DailyTelegraph.The

countryhas been forced to rely onChinese infrastructurebecause“home-grownalternatives” are

simply unavailable.Onlythree companies in theworld make thekit needed to rollout5Gand none

areBritish (the other twobeing EricssonofSwedenandNokiaofFinland). Itis deeply regrettable

that we have lostthe expertiseweoncehadintelecomsbut, ontheupside, thisepisode forces us

finallytoconfrontthatreality.TheNationalSecurity Councilhas limitedHuawei’s share of the5G

marketto35% andtheplan is to reducethisover time as domestic suppliers springuptofill thegap.

Britain andits closest allies must buildup theirknow-howinthiscrucialarea.“As DominicRaab,

theForeign Secretary, toldMPs,wemustnever be placedinthisposition again.”

Huawei: acrucial role in 5G

Spirit of the age

Good weekfor:

Billie Eilish,whoswept theboardatthe Grammys. Shewon five

awardsincludingbest newartist,albumofthe year,recordof the

year andsong oftheyear.Eilis halsobroke two records:at18,

sheis the youngestperson towinall fourmainawards, andshe

is also the first femaleartistto do so.

Giovanni Ferrero,chairmanof the Italian firm behind Nutella

and Ferrero Rocher,whopaidhimself andhis familya£542m

dividend–one of thelargest in Europeancorporate history.

Bad week for:

TheChurchof England,whichwas criticised forwarning

heterosexual couples whooptfor civil partnerships that they

shouldnot have sex. Christian teachingisthatsex outside

heterosexual marriage is sinfuland theHouseof Bishops decided

that civil partnerships, though legallybinding, are notmarriages.

Anxious flyers,who maybe aboutto losetheir right tobring

“emotional support animals”on toflights in the US.Following a

surge in complaintsabout supportanimals,USofficialshave said

theymightchangethe rules so that only trained servicedogsare

allowed on board. In recentyears, passengers havetried to board

aircraftwith arangeofanimals,includingspiders,possums,

iguanas, peacocks,ducks,pigs andevenasquirrel.

Victoria Derbyshire,with thesudden cancellationof her

BBC2daytimeseries.She said shewas“devastated” that the

Bafta Award-winning show wasbeing axed;apetitiontosave it

has attracted more than37,000signatures. TheBBCsaid it was

having tocut450jobsinnewstomake£80msavings.

Smartmotorwaydeaths

The Government is urgently

reviewing Britain’s

network of “smart“

motorways afteraBBC

Panoramainvestigation

found that 38 people had

been killed on them in five

years, and that the number

of near-misses had soared.

During busy periods, smart

motorway hard shoulders

can be used as extra vehicle

lanes, but this can leave

drivers whose cars break

down trapped in speeding

traffic. All smart stretches

are to be fitted with radar

technology to quickly trace

any cars that stop inalive

lane .The number of

emergency areas–currently

spaced up to 1.5 miles apart

–istobeincreased.

Facialrecognition

The Metropolitan Police

is to begin using facial

recognition cameras to

catch serious and violent

offenders, and to help it

find missing people. The

cameras are being deployed

followingaHighCourt

ruling, which is subject to

an appeal, that their use in

specific circumstances in

Wales was lawful. In the

Met’s trials, the software

has led toahighincidence

of “false positives”. The

cameras will be set up in

places likely to be used by

specific suspects, such as

outside railway stations

and pubs.

Pollwatch

82%of Britons are in favour

of species that are extinct in

Britain being reintroduced.

36%would like to see the

return of wolves and lynxes

and24%want brown bears

to be brought back.

YouGov

53%of people in Britain

think that capitalism

“does more harm than

good in the world”. In the

US, the figure is47%,but

it risesto63%in China,

69%in France and74%

in India.

Edelman Trust Barometer/

The Independent

63%of Britons feel they

have receivedabetter

scho ol education than their

parents. However, only

45%say they haveabetter

standard of living and just

29%believe they have

better job security.

YouGov/The Guardian

ArtsCouncilEngland

hassaidthatinsteadof

referringto“artists”,it

willusetheterm“creative

practitioners”,asitbelieves

thiswillmakeitsworkmore

inclusive.Announcingthe

move as part of its ten-year

plan to champion culture

for “every person in every

town, village and city”, the

funding body said some

people were uncomfortable

with the term “the arts”

and assume it only refers

to visual arts of “high art”,

such as ballet or opera.

Fifty super-rich but time-

poor tourists boarded a

privately chartered Boeing

757 last week fora24-day

around-the-world tour.

Costing from £108,000 a

head, the trip includes ten

flights, 23 five-star hotels,

and visits to Luang Prabang,

Kyoto, Rio de Janeiro and

the Galápagos Islands.