>...3G has another 12 years ahead of it

   "Assembly Research founder Matthew Howett told BBC News the change would probably come sooner than the government's 2033 deadline."

12 years is the deadline by which it must be done, not how long it will be around. 3G will be shut off in as as little as a year in some cases:

   "BT revealed plans to phase out 3G by 2023, and 2G later in the decade."