Boom in Hikvision UK sales sparks calls for full ban on Chinese CCTV giant
Former Conservative leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith has called for a full trading ban on Chinese CCTV giant Hikvision, after its UK more than doubled last year.
In 2023, Hikvision’s direct sales to UK and Irish customers jumped to £32.6m, up from £14.8m in the previous year, according to a recent filing with Companies House.
Hikvision UK Limited’s total revenue, which includes both direct sales and technical support, rose 22 per cent to £50.8m.
This spike in sales came in the first full year following a ban on Chinese camera companies at “sensitive sites”, announced by Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden in late 2022, due to security and human rights concerns.
Speaking about the figures, former Sir Duncan Smith, who is an outspoken critic of the company and renowned China hawk, called for a more comprehensive ban.
“The government should ban Hikvision from trading in the UK, the public has never had it explained how dangerous it is that they could have a whole map of your life. We seem to be so open to China,” he told The Sunday Telegraph.
The implementation of the ban has been sluggish, with lengthy timelines for departments to remove existing equipment. By April this year, only half of the equipment had been removed, with the rest on track to be replace by April 2025.
Dowden’s mandate covers high-risk government properties such as military and intelligence facilities but does not extend to many public sites or the private sector. As a result, Hikvision cameras are still used in schools, hospitals, and local councils.
The new sales figures suggest strong demand for Hikvision’s equipment, even as major British retailers like Tesco and Morrisons have banned their cameras.
Accusations of human rights abuses linked to Hikvision’s work in Xinjiang, where the Uyghur minority faces severe persecution, have tainted the company’s reputation. It has denied any wrongdoing.
As the world’s largest CCTV maker, Hikvision’s biggest shareholder is the state-owned China Electronics Technology Group Corporation.
Hikvision, which is also on a US trade blacklist due to security concerns, maintains that it is not a national security threat and says it plays an important role in protecting property and public safety.
City PM has approached the firm for comment.