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Hello. My name is Chris Bryant and I鈥檓 the telecoms minister. I鈥檓 really sorry I can鈥檛 be with you. Well, I鈥檓 here with you virtually, which I suppose is particularly important for the kind of connectivity that we鈥檙e talking about. But I鈥檓 afraid that, as you鈥檙e meeting, I will be in Parliament for the spring statement, when the Chancellor of the Exchequer will be talking about economic growth and how we get the economy to really springboard into the future.

I suppose that鈥檚 the key part of what I want to say today, which is that connectivity is a vital part of making sure that the UK economy grows, that everybody gets a chance to participate in our economic future, and that we embrace the technological changes that can make so many differences to people鈥檚 lives, whether in the delivery of public services or in the delivery of all the services that we rely on, whether it鈥檚 ordering a pizza, parking your car, or engaging with our local GP and seeing our latest test results.

I know that the geopolitical picture looks uncertain at the moment, and many parts of our lives, of course, are uncertain. Sometimes, trying to predict the future is difficult. That鈥檚 one of the reasons that, whereas we鈥檝e always talked about 鈥渇uture telecoms鈥� in the past, we鈥檙e changing the terminology to something which I think suits much better the situation that we face today. And that鈥檚 why instead of referring to 鈥渇uture telecoms鈥�, we鈥檙e now going to be referring to 鈥渁dvanced connectivity technologies鈥�, because advanced optics and satellite communications aren鈥檛 the ghosts of telecoms futures anymore, but actually telecoms present 鈥� let鈥檚 face it! Last year, Aston University transmitted data 4.5 million times faster than the average home broadband connection. We have started to send data through visible light. And Vodafone made the first video call via space last year. I鈥檓 an MP for a constituency in South Wales in The Valleys, and so I was very happy to see that that call took place from a remote Welsh mountain. The death of 鈥渘otspots鈥� may just about be in sight for us all!

The breakthroughs we are seeing mean that the UK could once again be a leader in connectivity over the next ten years, and I鈥檓 absolutely determined that we take forward those opportunities.

But before I take you into the future, let鈥檚 just pause briefly in the present. As we shape the next generation of connectivity, we must remember that some people in this country haven鈥檛 yet got this generation of technological connectivity. There鈥檚 1.6 million people in the UK who live largely offline. We have to factor them into our future, and our ambition is to have gigabit-capable broadband in every home and in every business, and higher quality 5G to all populated areas by 2030. Through the Digital Inclusion Action Plan, which we鈥檝e recently launched, we鈥檒l make sure people also have the devices and skills to be part of a digital future. We want to tackle digital exclusion so that we can take the whole of our country with us. So, deploying the best technology we have today and taking a leading role in shaping the technologies of tomorrow is vital to our economic success.

We will shape them, obviously, with global allies 鈥� but we will be guided by three central ideas. First of all, do they bring connectivity to everyone, everywhere, whatever your circumstances? Secondly, do they have security and resilience built in from the start? And thirdly, are they built sustainably, so that better connectivity gets us closer to net zero and not further away? These are all equally important, fundamental principles and ideas behind what we鈥檙e trying to achieve in this area.

The UK has the potential to be at the forefront as we develop these technologies. For a start, we build on research from some of the best universities in the world, and the JOINER research and innovation platform gives them a unique test network to prepare for 6G. British firms are getting connectivity to places it hasn鈥檛 gone before, like trains, offshore wind farms and space. BT, who nearly two centuries ago set up the world鈥檚 first nationwide communications network, are now leading the way with Toshiba in trials of quantum secure comms. And global companies like Ericsson, Nokia and Samsung have all chosen to do R&D work here in this country, in the United Kingdom.

We will shape them, obviously, with global allies 鈥� but we will be guided by three central ideas. First of all, do they bring connectivity to everyone, everywhere, whatever your circumstances? Secondly, do they have security and resilience built in from the start? And thirdly, are they built sustainably, so better connectivity gets us closer to net zero and not further away? These are all equally important, fundamental principles and ideas behind what we鈥檙e trying to achieve in this area.

The UK has the potential to be at the forefront as we develop these technologies. For a start, we build on research from some of the best universities in the world, and the JOINER research and innovation platform gives them a unique test network to prepare for 6G. British firms are getting connectivity to places it hasn鈥檛 gone before, like trains, offshore wind farms and space. BT, who nearly two centuries ago set up the world鈥檚 first nationwide communications network, are now leading the way with Toshiba in trials of quantum secure comms. And global companies like Ericsson, Nokia and Samsung have all chosen to do R&D work here in this country, in the United Kingdom.

We can and should go further, though, making the UK a global leader in advanced connectivity. And that鈥檚 where the government and industry really must work hand-in-hand. We will strengthen our supply chains 鈥� that鈥檚 really important. Today we will publish the government鈥檚 response to the report from the Telecoms Supply Chain Diversification Advisory Council, outlining how we will support a thriving ecosystem of suppliers for our networks. I鈥檓 immensely grateful to all those who took part in the Council鈥檚 work.

We will back your growth in this sector. Advanced connectivity will be one of the growth markets in our Industrial Strategy within the digital and technology sector. That means the backing across Whitehall to help you succeed. As a sign of that commitment, today I can announce that we will invest nearly 拢60 million over the next year, 2025 to 2026, to support UK leadership in R&D so that more of the technology providing the world鈥檚 critical connectivity is developed here in the UK.

If we get this right, then ten years down the line we will be able to say that this technology has made people鈥檚 daily lives better, put more money in people鈥檚 pockets and helps to keep the UK and our allies safe in a turbulent world. That鈥檚 a connected future we can only build together.

Thank you and I hope you have a good conference today.