Defence secretary expresses ‘grave’ worries over China telecoms giant Huawei providing UK 5G network

British intelligence agencies and Ministry of Defence working on ways to combat Beijing's espionage

Defence secretary Gavin Williamson has expressed “grave” worries about Chinese telecoms giant Huawei providing technology for the 5G network in Britain, warning “malign” activity by the Beijing government poses serious risks to this country’s national security.

British intelligence agencies, as well as the Ministry of Defence, are working on ways to combat Chinese espionage with particular attention to how it is exploiting nascent cybertechnology to extract secret information.

But Mr Williamson’s intervention – which comes after concerns were raised about spying and the Chinese state by the head of MI6, Alex Younger, and the foreign secretary, Jeremy Hunt – shows growing alarm about the issue.

Australia and New Zealand have blocked Huawei from being involved in their 5G networks on the grounds of national security, and the US has imposed restrictions on the company’s activities. Earlier this month Meng Wanzhou, a senior executive of the multinational, was arrested in Canada and is currently awaiting extradition proceedings to America.

It has been reported that the intelligence sharing network between the “Five Eyes” states – the US, UK, Australia, New Zealand and Canada – have repeatedly warned the Canadian government Huawei is establishing its presence in the country through a rapidly growing number of university projects, along with other means.

Mr Williamson, speaking about threats facing the UK during a journey back from a visit to Ukraine, said: “I have very deep, grave concerns about Huawei providing the 5G network in Britain, it is something we would have to look at very closely.

“We have got to look at what partners such as Australia and the US are doing in order to ensure maximum security of the 5G network. And we have got to recognise the fact, as has been recently exposed, the Chinese state does sometimes act in a malign way.”

The US has been urging its allies to stop using telecommunications equipment supplied by Huawei and other Chinese companies because of the security dangers they allegedly bring. Although the American military uses secure networks for the most sensitive information, much of its traffic still moves over commercial networks.

The UK, however, is keen not to overly antagonise China as it seeks trading partners in the uncertain post-Brexit future. Moreover, many of the country’s mobile networks have been working with Huawei on their 5G programmes and it will be difficult to make alternative arrangements at short notice.

In the US private companies have been urged to take measures against what the Pentagon sees as the Chinese security threat. TechMet, which is involved in securing metals used in the technology industry, has just appointed Admiral Mike Mullen, the former head of the US military, as chairman of its advisory board.

The company says one of the reasons Admiral Mullen, who served as principal military adviser to presidents Bush and Obama, came on board is to provide his expertise in ensuring the metals the US military needs for key equipment such as drones, electric vehicles and processing chips come from secure sources.

Brian Menell, the CEO of TechMet, said: “China has overwhelming control of technology metals.”

The company has been speaking to the US government’s Overseas Private Investment Corporation, said Mr Mennell, “about providing finance for TechMet [and] they rightly understand the critical need for the US to gain a greater portion of strategic technology metals, where China has a stranglehold, to protect national security interests and economic development”.

China, it is claimed, has control of almost 80 per cent of “technology metals” such as rare-earth elements. It is also the world’s largest producer of components, ranging from batteries to highly technical equipment, on which the west increasingly relies.

Huawei has repeatedly denied being involved in espionage. The firm, which was started by Ren Zhengfei, a former officer in China’s People’s Liberation Army, based in Guandong, employs 180,000 people.

The firm started out making equipment for mobile phone networks and has been rapidly expanding with an increasingly large international footprint, overtaking companies like Nokia and Ericsson to become a global leader. It has also started making smartphones, capturing 15 per cent of the market, ahead of Apple and second only to Samsung.

A spokesperson for Huawei said:“Cybersecurity is Huawei’s number one priority, and an area in which we are investing heavily. We fully agree with the need to ensure the security and integrity of national networks. As a responsible company and as a significant investor in the UK, we welcome dialogue with the British government and with the rest of the industry, as long as it is based on facts and on demonstrable evidence.”