Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Answer of 25 July 2023 to Question 194820 on Smart Devices: China, which areas of the transport sector employ cellular internet of things module technology as of 22 November 2023.

A cellular internet of things (IoT) device can be considered to be a low-power device with long battery life, which sends small amounts of data on an infrequent basis. The UK’s transport sector currently employs only a limited amount of devices that match this specification. As mobile network operators upgrade their networks, new low-power wide-area networks are emerging that have been developed to enable a wide range of IoT devices and services as part of the continued development and roll out of 5G connectivity.

Lead Government Departments, informed by threat assessments from a range of organisations, are responsible for leading work to determine national security risks to critical national infrastructure in their sectors. This is done in collaboration with partners including the National Cyber Security Centre and National Protective Security Authority as UK national technical authorities for cyber and physical security.