UK Government’s Emergency Services (LTE) Network is too much, too soon

Last week, TGG CEO Mike Norfield attended Cityforum’s round table event on delivering a step change in emergency service communications.  According to Norfield, it was interesting to join forces with senior officials, police and crime commissioners, emergency services officers and influencers in the telecoms industry to discuss how to inform the development of IT policy and strategy so we can create a safe and secure nation.

In a collum on the website of TGG Mike Norfield says: "I am all for the idea of introducing new technologies to improve the operational efficiency and effectiveness on the front line. At TTG, we are at the forefront of providing and developing communications products and services in global markets where communication is critical.

The Home Office announced the impending replacement of the services provided by Airwave with a new national mobile communication service, the Emergency Services Network (ESN). While this is a positive move for the emergency services, I’m concerned the Home Office is moving too quickly and not fully assessing the impact of a full-scale rush into LTE. The approach discussed at the event was not well thought through. Organisations are invited to tender in Q2 2014 and the system will be operational as early as September 2016.

I would argue that these timescales are too tight and the government will see a whole host of companies with little relevant public safety experience bidding for contracts. It seems that the Home Office is more concerned about terminating its contract with Airwave sooner than it is in ensuring that the right alternative is found and implemented successfully. It shouldn’t be about the cost of its current contract, it should be about what is right for public safety.

Bidders should be selected to run a pilot scheme in a chosen area that already has partial 4G coverage during a reasonable period of time – otherwise we could be heading for a disaster. What if there is a problem with the network after a full roll out? The government can’t back out then. A pilot scheme would address the key components of the new network and whether its partners are truly capable of the management, integration and delivery of LTE. Demonstrating quality, consistency and, most of all, mission critical voice is a must. 

I’ll finish with a question that I believe the Home Office should ask every network operator that is tendering to deliver the ESN: “Will you guarantee that, in an emergency situation public safety users will not just be given priority over the network but they will be given ruthless preemption. This means millisecond access to the network so that when a policeman presses the PPT button the radio devise works”? If the answer is “No” or “we can’t guarantee that”, then the government should think again and think hard and fast about dedicated spectrum.