UK wants fines for telcos using firms like Huawei
British telecoms companies could soon face big fines if they deal with tech firms like China's Huawei.
A new law put forward Tuesday (November 24) aims to fine British telcos 10% of turnover - or around $133,000 a day - if they break a ban on using equipment made by Huawei.
The UK government said the new bill would raise security standards of the country's telco firms, and remove the threat of high-risk suppliers.
In July, Britain banned the use of Huawei in its 5G networks from the end of 2027.
Officials feared U.S. sanctions on chip technology meant the Chinese company would not be a reliable supplier.
The new bill aims to enshrine that decision in law and manage threats from other high-risk vendors in the future.
The British government also said the bill's tougher security standards would help protect the UK from potential cyber attacks from countries and criminals.
In response, Huawei said it was disappointed the government was looking to exclude it from the roll-out of 5G.
Huawei called the decision 'politically motivated' and said it was not based on a 'fair evaluation of the risks'.
