Emergency Services Communications inquiry
Closed
What the inquiry looked at
“The Emergency Services Network is one of the most technologically advanced systems worldwide and is set to replace the existing emergency services communication system, Airwave. However several risks have been highlighted in a recent NAO report . The Government is seeking to upgrade the radio system used by the police, fire and ambulance services with a system that is not yet in use nationwide anywhere in the world, and therefore carries significant implementation risk, according to the National Audit Office. The communication systems used by our emergency services can literally make the difference between life and death for members of the public and the services themselves. The current communication service, Airwave, has served the emergency services effectively, and has averaged 99.9% availability since April 2010. It is, however an expensive system, costing £1,300 per handheld or vehicle-mounted device per year, and its data capabilities are poor. In addition, a deteriorating commercial relationship with Airwave after 2010 meant that the government did not believe an extension or re-procurement would offer value for money. ESN to replace Airwave The Government has been looking at options to replace Airwave when the contracts expire, and has set up the Emergency Services Mobile Communications Programme to carry out this work. The Government's chosen option to replace Airwave is known as the Emergency Services Network (ESN). ESN is inherently high risk. It is expected to save money by using parts of an existing commercial 4G network, that of EE. International comparison work, commissioned by the NAO, has concluded that the proposed ESN solution is the most advanced in the world, with only one other country—South Korea—seeking to deploy a similar solution. There are significant technical challenges that the programme needs to overcome including working with EE to increase the coverage and resilience of its 4G network so that it at least matches Airwave and developing handheld and vehicle mounted devices as no devices currently exist that would work on ESN.”
The committee's words, from the inquiry page on parliament.uk ↗.
What it found
The Home Office (the Department) is replacing the radio system used by the police, fire and ambulance services in Great Britain with a system that is not yet in use nationwide anywhere in the world. The Emergency Services Network (ESN) is an ambitious programme to provide a critical national service, using technology that is still being developed, to a challenging timescale set by the Department. While the Department has ensured stability in the senior team managing the project, notably through the Senior Responsible Owner who has been in post since 2011, it looks as if the current target date for delivering ESN will not be met. Emergency services will not use ESN until they are firmly convinced that it works, which may require more testing and assurance work than the current December 2019 delivery date seems to allow for. Despite the prospect of delay the Department has not budgeted for an extended transition period or put in place detailed contingency arrangements to manage this risk. The Department did not manage to maintain competitive pressure in letting either of the two main ESN contracts and when these contracts are recompleted the incumbent suppliers will be in a very strong position.
What the government said
No government response is linked to this report.
How the inquiry ran
Each dot is a dated item listed on this page, from the inquiry's opening on 24 October 2016 to its close on 4 January 2018.
- Oral evidence 16 Nov 2016
- Report 25 Jan 2017
- Correspondence 10 Oct 2017
What it recommended
The committee's recommendations are not listed here yet. Read them in 35th Report - Upgrading emergency service communications ↗ on parliament.uk.
Evidence
Oral evidence sessions 1
- 16 Nov 2016No witnesses recordedparliament.uk ↗