UK Officials Revamp ESN Plans Again, Target Airwave-to-LTE Transition for end of 2026

United Kingdom (UK) first responders are expected to use the TETRA-based Airwave system owned by Motorola Solutions for at least five more years, as the end of 2026 is the new target date for transitioning to the much-delayed, over-budget Emergency Services Network (ESN), according to a Home Office official.

Home Office Permanent Secretary Matthew Rycroft made the statements about the latest ESN “reset”—a roughly two-year delay compared to the “overambitious” target of late 2024 or early 2025 proposed last fall—during a hearing today before the UK Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC).

This represents the Home Office’s fourth new ESN timetable since Rycroft assumed the top job at the organization last July, but Rycroft said he is more confident about this schedule, because it was established through greater cooperation with representatives of the public-safety agencies that will be using the public-safety LTE network.