NIC Examine Regulation of the UK Telecoms and Broadband Industry

The Government’s National Infrastructure Commission has announced that they intend to conduct an examination of regulation in the UK energy, telecoms and water industries. The study will look at what future changes may be required to meet future needs, as well as any impact upon competition and investment.

The work is designed to build on the NIC’s National Infrastructure Assessment, which was published in July 2018 and among other things called for nationwide coverage of “full fibre” (FTTP) broadband by 2033 and for a related ‘National Broadband Plan‘ to be devised by Spring 2019.

Since then the Government has published new proposals as part of their recent Future Telecoms Infrastructure Review (here) – this echoed a lot of what the NIC wanted – and that was followed by an announcement from Ofcom concerning the related regulatory changes (here). The aim of both was to help boost investment and support for future 5G mobile and “full fibre” (FTTP) ultrafast broadband ISP networks.

Suffice to say that the NIC will be taking a deeper look at the regulatory side of all this and will focus on four key aspects.

Scope of the NIC Study

* What future changes will affect the regulated sectors:
The National Infrastructure Assessment identified the UK’s infrastructure needs to 2050. The study will aim to set out the key drivers of change over the coming decades.

* Competition and innovation:
Whether the regulatory model encourages where appropriate, sufficient competition and innovation to support efficient delivery of infrastructure.

* Regulatory consistency:
How regulators work together and collaborate on cross-cutting challenges and significant infrastructure projects.

* How Government and regulators work together:
How Government can effectively deliver its objectives in these regulated sectors, while continuing to safeguard the independence of the regulators.

The NIC promises to consider the “full range of potential implications of any changes” and will pay particular attention to the need to “keep bills affordable” and to ensure “vulnerable customers are protected” (e.g. the elderly, unemployed, disabled and those on low incomes).

Sir John Armitt, Chairman of the NIC, said:

“Whether it’s turning on a light, taking a phone call or even making a cup of tea, we are dependent on our energy, telecoms and water industries to go about our daily lives.

The regulators are vital in ensuring we as consumers are treated fairly. But if the UK is to be a world leader in the latest technologies, we need a system of regulation that allows companies to be innovative, without being penalised for it.

Our new study will examine how to strike the right balance and how companies and regulators alike can be ready to adapt to changes in future, while at the same time keeping bills affordable and protecting vulnerable customers.”

The NIC plans to publish their report on Regulation during Spring 2019, which may or may not recommend that Ofcom make further changes. On the other hand we aren’t expecting anything too dramatic, not least because on a lot of issues the Government and NIC have tended to be fairly closely aligned in their thinking.