PM sees off first Tory rebellion in row over Huawei

Boris Johnson has seen off his first Tory rebellion since the election in a row over Huawei's involvement in Britain's 5G network.

The prime minister defeated several of his own backbenchers who were trying to limit the Chinese tech giant's access to infrastructure in the UK to the end of 2022.

Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden tried to persuade the head of the rebellion - former Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith - not to persist with the issue by putting his amendment to a vote in parliament.

Huawei: The company and the security risks explained

But assurances the government wanted to eventually phase out "high-risk vendors" failed to buy him - and other Conservative grandees - off.

Mr Johnson won the vote by 306 to 282 with a majority of 24 - relatively narrow given he has a majority in parliament in 80.

Tory MP Bob Seely, part of the foreign affairs select committee, said he was "surprised" so many colleagues rebelled because the piece of legislation they were trying to amend "was not even the right vehicle".

"It was a strong first showing," he tweeted.

The row centres over Mr Johnson's decision in January to

allow Huawei to supply "non-core" elements of the 5G network

.

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