This snapshot taken on 04/03/2010, shows web content selected for preservation by The National Archives. External links, forms and search boxes may not work in archived websites.
We're creating a single website for everything to do with BIS but, while we do that, you'll find information in three places. > Find what you're looking for
The International team in EI is responsible for non-EU bilateral and multilateral information and communications policy relations and cooperation.
There are three main areas of work:
i) Internet Governance, including UK membership of the Governmental Advisory Committee of the Internet Corporation for Addressing, Naming and Numbering (ICANN GAC), UK government participation in the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) and the United Nations process on enhanced cooperation;
ii) International communications issues in the multilateral organisations in particular the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), and Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD);
iii) Government to Government relations with China, India, Japan, Korea, Canada and USA as leading global ICT countries.
Internet governance is likely to remain, an important issue for governments following the United Nations World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) held in Geneva and Tunis during 2003-05. For many countries, the key issue in the WSIS debate was the US oversight over a key function of the Internet domain name system: the management of the master directories of Internet Protocol (IP) addresses and domain names (known as 'the root') which is considered as a strategic national asset. The UK is generally comfortable with the current arrangements which we believe provide security for the Internet which might otherwise be undermined by politically-influenced multilateral oversight.
The WSIS compromise agreement on this issue contained in the Tunis Agenda drawn up in November 2005, established:
to enable governments to carry out their roles and responsibilities, in international public policy issues pertaining to the Internet, but not in the day-to-day technical and operational matters …;
the creation of an Internet Governance Forum (IGF) to discuss public policy issues related to key elements of Internet governance in order to foster the sustainability, robustness, security, stability and development of the Internet.
The IGF has no decision-making role, although it can make recommendations.
The IGF meets annually; the first meeting was held in Athens in November 2006, followed by Rio in November 2007 when the involvement of UK parliamentarians and others helped refocus the debate into areas of more direct relevance to Internet users.
The Europe & International team also provides the BIS support for the establishment by UK stakeholders (led by the UK domain name registry Nominet) of the UK IGF. The UK IGF’s aims are:
The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) is a not-for-profit, private sector organisation, incorporated in California which was established in 1998 by a coalition of Internet business, technical, academic and user communities as a forum for coordinating the technical management of the Internet domain name system. Governments are involved in ICANN’s work through an international Governmental Advisory Committee (GAC), which provides advice on public policy issues to the ICANN Board of Directors.
BIS’s Europe and International team provides the UK representative to the GAC and attends the three ICANN meetings each year. The GAC is addressing a number of key ongoing public policy issues including the introduction of internationalised domain names (Internet addresses in non-Latin scripts), the processes for introducing new top-level generic and country domains and the implementation of procedures to assess legality of requirements for WHOIS which is the look-up service that gives contact details for domain name owners.
There is an informal mechanism for European coordination in the GAC through a forum called the Informal Internet Group (IIG). Top level debate on Internet issues at EU level is discussed at the EU Higher Level Internet Group (HLIG).
The Europe & International team represents BIS on ICT policy in the following multilateral fora:
The OECD is a key part of the international financial and economic infrastructure, and an important vehicle for advancing UK policy interests and best practice. Its strengths include the Secretariat’s multidisciplinary analytical expertise and detailed data and statistics work.
With regard to the ICT sector, the principal OECD forum is the OECD’s Committee for Information, Computer and Communication Policy (ICCP) at which EI provides UK representation. EI also takes part in two of four ICCP working groups:
WPIE – Working Party on the Information Economy which looks at ICT applications including the digital delivery of content;
CISP – Communications, Infrastructures and Services Policies – EI and Ofcom share UK representation in this working party which looks at infrastructural issues including next generation broadband networks.
The ICCP is the lead organising committee for the OECD Ministerial Conference on the Future of the Internet Economy held in Seoul in June 2008. EI leads for the UK at the preparatory meetings for the ministerial conference and contributed to the drafting of a conference Ministerial Declaration.
The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) is the leading United Nations agency for the international communication sector. As a global focal point for governments (171 states are members) and the private sector (membership is also open to sector businesses – approx. 700), the ITU's role in helping the world communicate spans three core sectors: radio communications (ITU-R), standardisation (ITU-T) and development (ITU-D). The ITU was the UN’s lead organising agency for the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) which was held in two phases (Geneva and Tunis ) during 2003-05.
UK representation at the ITU on telecommunications issues is now largely undertaken by the international team of the UK communications regulator, OFCOM - with the exception of the four-yearly ITU Plenipotentiary Conference for which the EI International team in BIS leads. The next “Plenipot” will be held in 2010.
However, EI leads for the UK on the ITU’s handling of all Internet governance issues and attends ITU meetings where these are discussed.
The Europe & International team leads on proactive bilateral government to government relations with China, India, Japan, Korea, Canada and USA on ICT policy, Internet governance, regulatory best practice and technology developments.
China is becoming an influential player in the global ICT market. EI’s overarching objective is to ensure that China views the UK as having world-leading strengths in the ICT sector - policy, business and innovation - which China could draw upon as its ICT industry opens up to competition and foreign investment following China’s accession to the World Trade Organisation (WTO).
The Europe & International team, working in coordination with Ofcom, UKTI and the British Embassy in Beijing, has an ongoing programme of bilateral engagement with China on a wide range of communications policy issues. A second 5-year MoU on cooperation on ICT matters including regulatory policy and technology convergence, was signed with the Ministry of Industry and Information (MII- the telecommunications regulator) on 20 September 2006. EI has also developed with the State Council Information Office (SCIO) a annual Forum to discuss policy issues related to Internet content and regulation.
EI is also developing its relationships with the other key ministries and state agencies with a role in developing China’s ICT environment including the the State Administration for Radio, Film and Television (SARFT) on industry convergence, the National Development Reform Commission (NDRC) on strategic licensing issues, and with the State State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC) which has responsibility for all the Chinese telecommunications operators as state-owned enterprises, and leads on the long expected industry restructuring.
BIS (and previously BERR/DTI) has had a longstanding bilateral relationship with Japan on ICT policy. Japan is a mature and well-developed ICT market with highly advanced electronics industries and ICT infrastructure including next generation high speed broadband networks and optical fibre links to the home.
The aims for BIS’s Europe & International team in developing the relationship with Japan on ICT policy further – primarily with the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC) – are to understand more fully Japan's future direction as a global ICT technology leader to engage with Japanese policymakers in promoting regulatory reform (unlike the UK, there is no independent regulator) and aligning frameworks with technology convergence, and to raise the UK’s ICT profile.
India is rapidly emerging as a global force in ICT and in recognition of this and the accompanying growth of investment opportunities for the UK’s ICT sector (including service providers), EI’s international team is now developing a pro-active programme of policy dialogue with the Department of Telecommunications (DOT) and the domestic telecommunications regulator, the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), through the recently established Indo-British Telecom Forum. EI are also looking to foster a working relationship with the Department of Information Technology on Internet policy issues.
Korea is the world’s most advanced broadband market. The DTI renewed a 5-year Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation with the Ministry of Industry and Communications (now the Broadcasting and Communications Commission - BCC) in September 2006. Key to the dialogue with Korea is the value of keeping close to a world leading ICT industrial nation, learning from the Korean experience (especially on broadband), while also ensuring Korea continues to invest in the UK's ICT sector.
The EI international team maintains close relations with the US Department of State, which leads for the US in multilateral organisations such as the OECD and the ITU, the Department of Commerce and its bureau, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), which is the President's principal adviser on telecommunications and information policy issues. Bilateral discussions focus on technology developments and roll out in the US markets, and their impact on competition, and exchanging views on negotiating positions at meetings of the OECD, ITU and IGF.
Similarly, the EI international team has regular consultations on international ICT policy issues with Industry Canada which is BIS’s counterpart in the Canadian administration with responsibility for ICT policy.
Mark Carvell
Tel: 020 7215 1803
E-mail: mark.carvell@bis.gsi.gov.uk
Paul Redwin
Tel: 020 7215 1847
E-mail: paul.redwin@bis.gsi.gov.uk
Gary Hunt
Tel: 020 7215 4595
Email: gary.r.hunt@bis.gsi.gov.uk
Khadija Bundu
Tel: 020 7215 8795
E-mail: khadija.bundu@bis.gsi.gov.uk
Neville Beatie
Tel: 020 7215 5000
Email: neville.beatie@bis.gsi.gov.uk
