Britannia should rule the (cyber) waves, minister tells Singapore event in bid to drum up Commonwealth support

2020-10-12 08:30

A UK government minister has called for the country to "Shape the standards of new technology" in a speech aimed at drumming up Commonwealth support for a cyber "Leadership" role for post-Brexit Britain.

Foreign Office minister James Cleverly told an invited audience at Singapore's International Cyber Week: "We must shape the standards of new technology to ensure individual security, safety and privacy," while pointing to "The rapidly expanding Internet of Things" as "a good example of where the UK and Singapore have both led initiatives to promote security in design."

Cleverly's speech comes as the UK prepares to exit the European Union and its trade pacts in January.

Throwing a token £1m at Commonwealth nations to "Build their cyber incident response capabilities" as part of his speech, Cleverly repeated long-held British government concerns that "Cyberspace is a place where threats lurk and change happens at great speed," emphasising that "We must use our collective voices and actions to reaffirm that international law applies in cyberspace, just as much as it does in our normal lives."

Perhaps Cleverly's rhetoric echoing the Cold War will win a cold reception among nations for whom the European 20th century standoff means little.

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