Boris Johnson told to give legally-binding Huawei 5G exit date or face Commons defeat

Boris Johnson must provide a legally-binding date to strip Huawei from Britain's 5G network or face a Commons defeat, senior Tory MPs have warned.

Conservatives are pressing for a concrete pledge by the Government within the next two months, while crucial legislation is expected to go through Parliament.

Writing in The Telegraph, Sir Iain Duncan Smith and Bob Seely said: "Parliament is feeling increasingly restless about the UK's dependency on China. More and more legislators are recognising that how we handle this issue hugely affects our constituents."

They said a ban on new Huawei equipment being installed into the UK network from 2023 or 2024, which the Government has been discussing, will "not be sufficient". Instead, they have called on the Government to agree to having "all Huawei equipment removed from the UK network, root and branch, by a fixed date".

Sir Iain and Mr Seely pointed out that 59 MPs have now joined the Huawei Interest Group of Conservative MPs. 

A source close to the group said on Monday that they could all vote against the Government by supporting rebel amendments to three potential bills due to go through Parliament before the summer recess. These include the Telecommunications Infrastructure  (Leasehold Property) Bill, currently going through the committee stage in the House of Lords.

Lord Alton is expected to lay down an amendment to stop companies with links to human rights abuses from supplying telecoms to leasehold properties. A draft of his amendment, seen by The Telegraph, says no operator should be allowed to use the UK's telecommunications infrastructure "to breach human rights after 31 December 2023".

Sir Iain and Mr Seely said the Parliamentary arithmetic on upcoming legislation is "troubling ministers". 

They wrote that MPs are "no longer prepared to sit idly by as a nascent superpower, run by a repressive and intolerant government, undermines the global rules-based order", adding: "In allowing Huawei into our 5G networks, we have undermined the unity of the shared Five Eyes approach to the global conduct of the Chinese Communist Party."

Neil O'Brien, the Conservative MP who co-leads the China Research Group, told The Telegraph: "There are important choices to make on whether changes will only affect the 5G network or also older Huawei 3G and 4G equipment that is in the network now. 

"There are also choices on whether to set a date for stopping new inflow of Huawei equipment, or a date to have eliminated it by."

It comes amid Government plans to introduce new legislation that would prevent foreign takeovers by companies that represent a threat to national security.

As part of the Government's National Security and Investment Bill, ministers are working to make it compulsory for British companies to report any attempted takeovers that could be a cause for concern over security. Anyone who fails to comply with the rules after takeovers could risk imprisonment and fines.

Mr Johnson's official spokesman said the bill would "strengthen the Government's power to scrutinise and intervene in takeovers and mergers to protect national security, wherever risks may emanate from". He added that details of the legislation would "be announced in due course", saying: "It's a Queen's speech commitment, so I'm sure it won't be too long before we bring the legislation forward."

The Prime Minister wants "academic partnerships" and research projects to be included under the rules amid concern about links between British universities and Chinese companies, the Times reported on Monday.

Last month, The Telegraph revealed that Huawei backed 17 scientific papers with UK universities about cutting-edge "dual use" technologies in an attempt to forge close ties to western culture.

Meanwhile, Huawei published an open letter in several national newspapers on Monday, pledging that it was as "committed as ever" to building internet networks "quickly, affordably and securely".

In the letter, the Chinese telecoms giant said: "For nearly 20 years, we've supplied the UK's mobile and broadband companies with 3G and 4G. But some now question our role in helping Britain lead the way in 5G.

"We're also playing our part in creating jobs, training the engineers of tomorrow, investing in new technology and supporting universities."