Undersea Cables

Lord Harris of Haringey Excerpts

Tuesday 3rd December 2024 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[Lord Harris of Haringey]

To ask His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the recent severing of two fibre optic cables in the Baltic Sea and of the arrangements in place to protect undersea cables serving the United Kingdom.

[Lord Harris of Haringey (Lab)]

My Lords, I refer to my interest as chair of the National Preparedness Commission and beg leave to ask the Question standing in my name on the Order Paper.

[The Minister of State, Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (Lord Vallance of Balham) (Lab)]

We are working closely with international partners following the breakage of two subsea telecommunications cables in the Baltic Sea a fortnight ago. It is important that we let those investigations run their course. Subsea cables are critical to UK telecommunications digital infrastructure, and we are committed to maintaining and enhancing the security and resilience of that infra- structure. We will continue to co-ordinate with security partners, the subsea cables industry and international bodies on this issue.

[Lord Harris of Haringey (Lab)]

My Lords, I am grateful to the Minister for that reply and the recognition of the criticality to the UK of these subsea connections. What consideration are the Government giving to protection and making sure that we can recover quickly in circumstances in which those cables are disrupted or severed? I understand that in Australia, for example, the equivalent of Ofcom requires a licence from those making those connections, and that licence must specify what arrangements are in place for the immediate repair of any severed cable. Are we considering such measures or any others?

[Lord Vallance of Balham (Lab)]

I thank my noble friend for that question. There are 64 cable systems that leave the UK, with 116 cables. About 200 cables break every year around the world, and 10 to 20 of those are in the UK. There is a system of payment from the companies for a ship which gives 24-hour, seven-days-a-week coverage for repairs, as well as systems, of course, to get other commercial repairs done at a slower pace. We work closely with others around the world, including the Australians, and are aware of that model. There are rather specific circumstances which mean that, at the moment, that does not work here, but the ability to get ships rapidly to broken cables is important and that is facilitated by the planning arrangements in place.