Artificial Intelligence in Weapon Systems Committee Report

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent Excerpts

Friday 19th April 2024 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent (Lab)]

My Lords, I remind your Lordships’ House of my register of interests, specifically my association with the Royal Navy.

I feel that I should start my contribution with an apology to the noble Lord, Lord Lisvane. When I joined your Lordship’s House, I was delighted to be appointed to the AI in Weapon Systems Committee and very much enjoyed my attendance. However, my work on the Front Bench did not allow me to fully participate, so I apologise that I was unable to remain on the noble Lord’s committee. I am, however, delighted to be responding on behalf of His Majesty’s Opposition to such a timely and considered report, and congratulate both the noble Lord, Lord Lisvane, and his committee on the report and today’s informed and challenging debate.

As has been highlighted throughout the debate, if we ever needed a reminder of the changing strategic environment within which we operate, we need only consider the use of drone warfare in both the Ukrainian theatre and the targeting of Israel by Iran at the weekend, compounded by events overnight. Technology is developing at speed, hybrid warfare is increasingly the norm, and consideration of autonomous weapons systems as part of our coterie of defensive platforms is no longer the exception. As the technology develops, the onus is therefore on us to ensure that we are considering the lethality and ethical impact of each new system and tool available to us, ensuring that any AI-enabled systems help to augment our defensive capabilities, not replace them, and that human decision-making remains at the core of every military action. This report has thoughtfully highlighted some of the key challenges this and any future Government will face when procuring and deploying new technology, and working with allies to ensure that our defensive platforms operate within the currently agreed norms.

Turning to the detail: in order to explore and manage an issue, it is vital that we can agree what we are talking about. Although I appreciate the Government’s concerns regarding a narrow definition and the potential legal pitfalls which may follow, the lack of an agreed definition must make conversations harder with partners, including industry. As the committee established, there is no internationally agreed definition of AWS currently in place with NATO allies and our Five Eyes partners. It is vital that, with our key allies, we seek to broadly define and agree the concept of AWS, if only to ensure clear communication channels as the technology develops—defence is rarely an ideal area for ambiguity. If a definition is considered unhelpful by the Government, would the Minister consider the adoption of an agreed framework in this area as an alternative?

“Artificial intelligence” is a fashionable term, and the impact of advanced machine learning is being considered in every field. For defence, the embrace of new technology is nothing new, and the use of machine learning has been a core part of the development of our capabilities during my lifetime. However useful machines are and however effective our technology becomes, the reality is that humans must always be accountable for the operations that our military undertakes. This is a necessary guarantee to ensure compliance with international humanitarian law, and I welcome the Government’s ongoing commitment to this premise. However, as this technology develops, can the Minister provide us with slightly more detail than was afforded by the Government’s response to this report? Specifically, what new processes are being considered by the department to ensure human accountability if some weapons systems are fully autonomous, as seems increasingly likely?

As the events of the past two years have made all too clear, we are living through a period of global turmoil that requires renewed consideration of our defence capabilities. No one in your Lordships’ House is seeking to undermine the efforts of the United Kingdom to defend itself and work with its allies; in fact, it is increasingly clear that a technological edge in defence capabilities, in concert with our allies, is as crucial to our doctrine of deterrence now as it ever has been. To that end, can the Minister update us on how the department plans to reform the procurement process in order to reflect the changing nature of the available technology? The committee recommends that the MoD’s procurement process should be revamped to be appropriate for the world of AI, and says that the current process lacks capability in software and data, which are essential to AI, and has limited expertise in the procurement of these platforms.

As the Minister will be aware, the Labour Party has pledged, if we are fortunate enough to form the next Government, to establish a fully functioning military strategic HQ within the MoD as a strategic authority over the capability that our Armed Forces must have and how it is procured, in order to make Britain better defended and fit to fight. We will also seek to create new strategic leadership in procurement by establishing a national armaments director. The NAD will be responsible to the strategic centre for ensuring that we have the capabilities needed to execute the defence plans and operations demanded by the new era. This role will be key to the development of a new procurement process, which will secure the platforms and technologies needed across all services as the strategic environment changes and will be core to the procurement plans under a future Labour Government, including the procurement of AI-enabled weapon systems.

So, although I welcome the fact that the Government have recognised the need for significant change to transform the MoD procurement process on this and every other issue in order to commission AI-ready platforms effectively, can the Minister update your Lordships’ House on the Government’s plans and how the MoD procurement process will be reformed to ensure that it has the capacity and expertise for the software and data procurement projects that are essential for developing AI?

In his Lancaster House speech earlier this year, the right honourable Grant Shapps MP stated that we are

“moving from a post war to a pre-war world”.

Given recent events and the range of hot conflict zones now impacting UK strategic interests, it is vital that we use every tool available to us to protect our national interest. This includes the use of AI and AWS; we just need to make sure that we always develop and deploy them in line with our shared value systems.

I thank the noble Lord, Lord Lisvane, and the committee for their thoughtful work and for ensuring that we have taken the time at the right juncture to consider how we will progress in defence as technology develops so rapidly.