Improving our National and International Security
Baroness Neville-Rolfe's keynote speech at the International Government Security Conference 2023
Thank you, Vincent, for that kind welcome – and good evening, everyone.
Thank you all for coming and to the Government Security Group in particular for your offer of hospitality in the days of work ahead.
And I will start with a question.
Could there be a more important time for a conference on security?
We meet at a very difficult time. The world is getting darker and we face enormous threats to world security.
The complexities of security are more evident in the last few months than ever before…
…War in Ukraine, conflict in Israel and Palestine and the constant drip drip drip of cybercrime and fraud - could - if we let it - become a deluge.
But it’s not just criminals we need to concern ourselves with…
…whole countries are turning to their computers to commit crime. It is no longer the loner in their bedroom planning cyberattacks…
…it’s buildings of people, sanctioned by their state, challenging the basic conditions for an open, stable and peaceful international order which everyone in this room will support.
We explained the difficulties in our Integrated Review Refresh in March and called out ways in which the world was getting darker.
Moreover, as the world turns, our security needs will become more complex…
…and this complexity is being demonstrated in Bletchley Park right now, as the Prime Minister hosts the first ever Global AI Safety Summit…
…countries from across the world - and tech leaders and innovators - all working together with one goal…
…which is to ensure that the next tech frontier is as safe and secure as possible.
Today’s session at our conference is about how collaboration will strengthen the security of our governments…
…governments that are threatened by increasingly skilled adversaries…
…adversaries who are determined to exploit our large quantities of data, and hold to ransom our online public services.
Today, I want to outline how the UK Government is staying secure…
…and how we are collaborating across the world to improve international security. I have already mentioned cybercrime…
…soon enough, this type of crime will become so commonplace that it will simply be known as ‘crime’.
I am clear that the digital world is one of the battlegrounds of the future…
…where frontlines are not defined by physical borders. This is a big change.
Hybrid methods of warfare have long been used to destabilise adversaries, but cybersecurity threats are evolving at an alarming pace. Malicious actors exploit vulnerabilities in our interconnected systems.
A few years ago, WannaCry wreaked havoc in the UK National Health system. Today 8 out of 10 ransomware attacks come from Russian speaking sources.
However, I believe that the UK is prepared to tackle these challenges.
Our National Cyber Security Strategy outlines how we will bolster Government digital infrastructure to withstand attacks…
…we are training businesses and public services about how to remain resilient against digital crime…
…and as the third largest exporter of cybersecurity services globally, we are sharing our expertise with the world.
But as criminals adapt their methods, we too must adapt.
Take the fight against public sector fraud, which transcends national borders and threatens our national security.
Our leadership in the UK of the International Public Sector Fraud Forum is crucial here.
Through this dialogue both the UK and our partners are alive to the developing issues…
…and coming up with ways to fight the fraudsters, wherever they are. I was fortunate to attend their forum earlier this year…
…and I was struck, very struck, by the strength of our relationship with our Five-Eyes partners…
…and how that partnership is enhancing fraud prevention, improving investigative techniques, and leading to a better understanding of different types of attacks, including ransomware.
In fact, ransomware featured strongly in my discussions at Singapore International Cyber Week a fortnight ago.
It was clear to me that Singapore is a good place for these discussions. It sits at the very heart of the Indo Pacific…
…which has become a greater focus for British foreign and security policy for a number of reasons.
It was a successful visit for us all…
…one which builds on our recent achievements in the region, including the AUKUS agreement, obtaining Dialogue Status with ASEAN, several trade deals and a recent UK Singapore Strategic Partnership agreed by our Prime Minister…
… a partnership built on how like-minded we are when it comes to cybersecurity, and our joint leadership in advanced artificial intelligence, on which we are spending a lot of time on this week.
I am pleased to say that we are building on this national and international work.
This year, we announced a new Integrated Security Fund - replacing the Conflict Stability and Security Fund, which was much loved…
…which will help keep the UK safe and address global sources of volatility and insecurity.
With a budget of almost £1 billion, it will, for example, help develop regional cyber strategies and training…
…both essential components which will help our allies deter cyberattacks on their national infrastructure.
I mentioned ASEAN, and this fund is delivering technical and policy capacity building in ASEAN
…but the Fund also supports projects that assist Ukraine and counter Russian disinformation.
But it’s not enough to bolster projects that already exist…
…we have to also invest in the skills, skills for the future, so the projects of the future - ones we can’t even comprehend yet - can be created and maintained.
It is clear that the UK can be a leader in digital skills…
We are the European leaders in Fintech, with one-thousand-six-hundred firms based here…
…our telecoms, our computer and information services exports are valued at over thirty-eight-billion pounds…
…and with 1% of the world’s population – so we’re not that huge – we have built the 3rd largest AI sector in the world.
Despite this, and I’m sure this is agreed, we must do more globally to foster data and digital skills, and in particular our cyber talent pipeline…
…and the professionalism of cyber internationally to match our professional success in law and accountancy.
But, as the threats we face are increasingly global in nature, we have to work with global partners to confront them…
…and that is why I was so pleased to announce - as part of my visit to Singapore - a new Women in Cyber Network across South East Asia…
…which will run women-led projects that address regionally specific cybersecurity challenges, with the support of UK best practice, and I was delighted to discover that so many colleagues from the US delegation came from the female side.
This focus on skills is no more needed than in the area of supply chains.
Strong and resilient supply chains are of fundamental importance to our economic and national security…
…and it is prudent to set common standards for suppliers, to support a secure and prosperous international order.
It has been wonderful to see the Five Eyes’ global leadership flourish in areas such as software security and supplier assurance…
…but it behoves us to do more and faster.
Because if we don’t, our adversaries will exploit our open economies to use ownership models and state-backed companies against us…
…with Huawei and HikVision being prime examples.
Our new UK Procurement Act - which received Royal assent last week - will help tackle this specific threat.
It will enable us to reject bids from any Government supplier that poses a threat to national security…
…and we are setting up a new National Security Unit for Procurement in the Cabinet Office, which will advise the Government on future priorities.
We are going even further to prevent interference in our political infrastructure through our Defending Democracy Taskforce - of which I am a member - under the leadership of Tom Tugendhat, the security minister at the Home Office.
It is working across government to protect the integrity of our democracy from threats of foreign interference.
This is now teeing up work to protect our representatives and voting systems from hostile attacks at our next election.
Here, too, the importance of collaboration across governments to reduce these and other security risks cannot be overstated. After all, next year is an election year in the EU and US.
Ladies and gentlemen, it is clear that - in our interconnected world - our security is a shared responsibility.
What we can achieve together is an all-round ecosystem of security built on our world-class foundations of education, expertise, technology and capability.
Yes, our security needs are more complex than they used to be, but in the face of that complexity we must remain committed to collaboration.
Collaboration on our shared security will help us overcome fraudsters, criminals, bandit states - and indeed anyone who wants to undermine the strength of our partnerships for their own gains.
If we hold our resolve, it is clear to me they will not win…
…and through our partnerships, we will help build a stronger, more resilient and more secure world.
Thank you for listening.