Sir Chris Bryant speech at TMT World Congress 2025
Minister for Data Protection and Telecoms, Sir Chris Bryant, gave a speech at TMT World Congress 2025 on 30 January 2025.
Without vision, the people perish. Without a plan, the vision perishes. And without investment, financial, social and personal, the plan perishes.
So let me start with a vision of a nation:
A government that has economic growth as a constant obsession permeating everything it does.
An economy that enjoys some of the strongest inward investment in Europe.
A country with fierce ambitions: connectivity for all; inclusion wherever you live; science and innovation unshackled; AI unleashing greater productivity across the economy and public services.
There바카라 사이트™s no route to growth without digital infrastructure.
The fibres, the subsea cables, the telegraph poles, the ducts, the data centres, the satellite connections, they are the central nervous system of a modern economy.
- Without reliable ultrafast or gigabit capable broadband, businesses will be stuck on calls repeating 바카라 사이트˜can you hear me now?바카라 사이트™ into the void.
- Without 5G standalone, public services will lag behind.
- Without enough data centres, AI will run out of juice.
We바카라 사이트™ve come a long way in investing in our digital infrastructure in the UK, thanks to the efforts of many of you in this room.
I바카라 사이트™m here to tell you about how the government will help you seize the investment opportunities around the corner.
Looking back, we바카라 사이트™ve already come a long way.
- More than 85% of homes and businesses in the UK can now access gigabit-capable broadband. It was just 10% in 2019.
- Telcos are investing £40 billion to hit 100% by 2030.
- And earlier this month, we signed four new Project Gigabit contracts with Openreach to get gigabit-capable broadband to over 130,000 new homes.
Likewise on mobile connectivity:
- According to Ofcom, 5G is now available outside of 95% of homes and businesses across the country.
- Customers across the UK are feeling the benefits of standalone 5G, thanks to Vodafone, VMO2 and BT/EE 바카라 사이트“ we want that everywhere by 2030.
On data centres:
- We have just over 500, putting us third globally.
- And in the AI Opportunities Action Plan, we committed to upping public computing power twentyfold by 2030.
But I don바카라 사이트™t only measure growth in terawatt-hours of computing power, or billions of pounds.
I measure it in individual lives changed by connection.
Connectivity can deliver the world-class public services British people deserve:
- Standalone 5G in hospitals could transmit high-res scans to diagnose disease faster
- Or stream bodycam videos from police on the street to back-up waiting at HQ.
If the digital revolution is to deliver a fairer, more prosperous future for Britain, we바카라 사이트™ve also got to make sure everyone in the UK sees the benefit. 5% of homes still aren바카라 사이트™t connected to the internet and the figure for poorer homes is even worse 바카라 사이트“ 19%.
I바카라 사이트™m grateful for the work the sector has done on digital inclusion, including social tariffs.
But we have to do better than that:
a) because every household lost to the digital economy loses out on phenomenal opportunities and
b) because they are also lost as workers, as citizens and as customers.
So: huge amounts of progress on connecting us all to growth.
But we바카라 사이트™ve got much further to go.
To make our vision a reality, we need investment.
Today, the UK is Europe바카라 사이트™s number one destination for new investment in projects and new jobs.
The International Investment Summit in October broke records, creating 38,000 new jobs and bringing £63 billion into the UK 바카라 사이트“ with much of that pouring into tech and data centres.
And another £14 billion was secured when we launched the AI Opportunities Action Plan. But that바카라 사이트™s just the start.
Our ambition is to make Britain the best place to invest in the world.
Here바카라 사이트™s how:
1. Partnering with you for growth.
Within days of taking office, we set up the National Wealth Fund to the tune of £27.8 billion.
It shows how serious we are about partnering with private capital to invest in the jobs, industries and infrastructure of the future.
Six months in, that바카라 사이트™s unlocked £1.6 billion 바카라 사이트“ including supporting faster broadband connections for thousands of businesses and homes in Cornwall, Yorkshire, Lincolnshire and Cumbria.
2. Making sure regulation and planning don바카라 사이트™t tie us all in knots.
The PM and Chancellor have both been clear about the need for pro-growth regulation across the economy, as an essential part of our growth mission.
We바카라 사이트™ll give you the stable regulatory framework that gives investors confidence.
And more planning reform to help you build equipment quickly and cost-effectively 바카라 사이트“ including the last telecoms provisions from the Product Security and Telecommunications Infrastructure Act.
3. Backing competition:
Competition is the only way to drive innovation and growth, and a better experience for customers.
The Vodafone and Three merger is a great example, with a £11 billion investment commitment for standalone 5G, bringing better connections to 99% of the population.
Underpinning all of this is a determination to tear down the barriers to growth.
If you want to create wealth and jobs for British people, we will not stand in your way.
This is a vision of a country that바카라 사이트™s as ambitious about investment as it is about connecting people.
You can바카라 사이트™t do one without the other.
I can almost hear the whisper of deals in the air today.
So here바카라 사이트™s one more for you to think about over coffee:
Help us make the things digital infrastructure connects us to 바카라 사이트“ family, friends, a job offer, a business deal, growth 바카라 사이트“ available to all.
In return, we바카라 사이트™ll make this the best place in the world for you to invest to make that happen.
Thank you.