Online Safety Act 2023: Implementation
Peter Kyle Excerpts(1 week ago)
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The Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology (Peter Kyle)
Today, the Government have reached two significant milestones in the implementation of the Online Safety Act (“the Act”), marking an important step forward in creating a safer online environment for all UK citizens. Today, I am laying in Parliament Ofcom’s first draft codes of practice for the illegal content duties and draft regulations setting out the threshold conditions for category 1, 2A and 2B services under the Act.
Ofcom’s draft illegal content duties codes of practice:
The illegal content duties apply to all regulated user-to-user and search services under the Act, no matter their size or reach. These include new duties to have systems and processes in place to tackle illegal content and activity. Ofcom, as the independent regulator for this regime, is required to set out measures in codes of practice that providers can take to fulfil these statutory duties. Ofcom has now submitted to me the drafts of its first codes of practice for the illegal content duties to lay these in Parliament for scrutiny. If neither House objects to the draft codes, Ofcom must issue the codes and the illegal content duties will come into force 21 calendar days later. Once the codes have come into force, the statutory safety duties will begin to apply to service providers, and Ofcom will be able to enforce against non-compliance.
Ofcom has also published its guidance on how providers should carry out risk assessments for illegal content and activity. Providers now have three months to complete their illegal content risk assessment.
The completion of the risk assessments should coincide with the codes of practice coming into force if they pass the statutory laying period. Ofcom’s codes will set out steps service providers can take to address identified risks. The draft codes will drive significant improvements in online safety in several areas. They will ensure service providers put in place effective systems and processes to take down illegal content, including for content that amounts to terrorism, child sexual abuse material (CSAM), public order offences, assisting suicide, intimate image abuse content and other offences. They will make it materially harder for strangers to contact children online, to protect children from grooming. They will significantly expand the number of services that use automated tools to detect CSAM. They will make it significantly easier for the police and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to report fraud and scams to online service providers. And they will make it easier for users to report potentially illegal content.
The draft codes are a vital step in implementing the new regime. Ofcom fully intends to build on these foundations and has announced plans to launch a consultation in spring 2025 on additional measures for the codes. This includes consulting on how automated tools can be used to proactively detect illegal content, including the content most harmful to children, going beyond the automated detection measures that Ofcom have already included. Bringing in the codes will be a key milestone in creating a safer online environment for UK citizens as the duties begin to apply and become enforceable.
Categorisation thresholds:
Services which are ‘categorised’ under the Act will have additional duties placed on them. This is on top of the duties which all regulated user-to-user and search services must comply with to tackle illegal content and, where relevant, to protect children from content that is legal but nonetheless harmful to them. The additional duties will vary depending on whether a service is designated category 1—large user-to-user services—category 2A— large search services—or category 2B—smaller categorised user-to-user services.
In making these regulations, I have considered factors as required by the Act. Amendments made during the passage of the Act, changed the consideration for category 1 from the “level of risk of harm to adults from priority content that is harmful to adults disseminated by means of the service” to “how easily, quickly and widely regulated user-generated content is disseminated by means of the service.” This was a significant change and, while I understand that this approach has its critics who argue that the risk of harm is the more significant factor, this is the position under the Act.
Ofcom advice and the Secretary of State’s (Peter Kyle) decision on threshold conditions
The Act required Ofcom to carry out research within six months of Royal Assent, and to then provide the Secretary of State with advice on the threshold conditions for each of the three categories. This research included a call for evidence so that stakeholder feedback could be considered in Ofcom’s advice.
After considering Ofcom’s advice and subsequent clarificatory information in public letters, I have decided to set threshold conditions for categorisation in accordance with Ofcom’s recommendations. I am satisfied that Ofcom’s advice, which was published in March, is the culmination of an objective, evidence-based process. I have taken this decision in line with the factors set out in schedule 11 of the Act. I have been very clear to date, and want to reiterate, that my priority is the swift implementation of the Act’s duties to create a safer online environment for everyone. I am open to further research in the future and to update thresholds in force if necessary.
I appreciate that there may be some concerns that, at this time, threshold conditions have not been set to capture so-called “small but risky” services by reference to certain functionalities and characteristics or factors. My decision to proceed with the thresholds recommended by Ofcom, rather than to take the approach of discounting user number thresholds, reflects the fact that any threshold condition created by the Government should take into account the factors as set out in the Act, be evidence-based and avoid the risk of unintended consequences.
I also welcome Ofcom’s statement that it is keenly aware that the smallest online services can represent a significant risk to UK citizens, that it has established a dedicated “small but risky” supervision taskforce and that it will use the tools available under the Act to identify, manage and enforce against such services where there is a failure to comply with the duties that all regulated services will be subject to. This includes enforcement powers: to impose penalties on service providers of up to 10% of qualifying worldwide revenue or £18 million—whichever is greater; to require services to take remedial action; and in certain cases, to apply to court for business disruption measures to be taken against service providers.
As Secretary of State, my priority is timely implementation of the Act to ensure that the additional duties are enforceable as soon as possible. Ofcom’s recently updated implementation roadmap sets out the expectation that it aims to publish the register of categorised services in summer 2025 and will launch transparency reporting within a few weeks of publication of the register. This timeline is contingent on the regulations for categorisation thresholds being approved by Parliament without delay.
Proportionality
Many of the additional duties for categorised services have proportionality as a relevant consideration. For example, in determining what is proportionate for the user empowerment content duty, the findings of the most recent user empowerment assessment are relevant which includes the incidence of relevant content on the service, in addition to the size and capacity of a provider. When producing its guidance and codes of practice Ofcom will have regard to the principle of proportionality. In line with Ofcom’s recommendations, we have made it clear in the regulations that services are not captured under category 1 if they use a content recommender system which only recommends to a user their own content.
Threshold conditions
Following Ofcom’s advice and having taken into account matters as required by the Act, I have therefore today laid draft regulations which are intended to give effect to the following threshold conditions for each category of service:
The Category 1 threshold conditions are met by a regulated user-to-user service where, in respect of the user-to-user part of that service, it:
has an average number of monthly active United Kingdom users that exceeds 34 million and uses a content recommender system, OR
has an average number of monthly active United Kingdom users that exceeds 7 million, uses a content recommender system and provides a functionality for users to forward or share regulated user-generated content on the service with other users of that service.
The Category 2A threshold conditions are met by a search engine of a regulated search service or a combined service where it:
has an average number of monthly active United Kingdom users that exceeds 7 million, and
is not a vertical search engine—a search engine which only enables a user to search selected websites or databases in relation to a specific topic, theme or genre of search content.
The Category 2B threshold conditions are met by a regulated user-to-user service where, in respect of the user-to-user part of that service, it:
has an average number of monthly active United Kingdom users that exceeds 3 million and provides a functionality for users to send direct messages to other users of the same service.
[HCWS312]
Oral Answers to Questions
Peter Kyle Excerpts(1 month ago)
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Tony Vaughan (Folkestone and Hythe) (Lab)
The Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology (Peter Kyle)
The UK is a founding member of the AI Safety Institute international network. The network convenes for the first time today in San Francisco.
Tony Vaughan
The UK is a global leader in AI development, which brings many opportunities, but we know that the risks associated with AI can be managed only by global co-operation. What steps is the Department taking to ensure that the UK works with other main leaders in AI development, including the US and China, to ensure that the most advanced frontier AI models are safe for global consumers?
Peter Kyle
My hon. Friend is completely right to say that safety has to be there from the outset. We want our country to safely explore all the opportunities that AI offers, but it can do so only if people are reassured that safety is there from the outset. The UK safety institute is at the forefront of this. It is the first safety institute, and we are at the forefront of delivering international as well as domestic safety. We are currently working on an international review of the science of AI safety, which draws on the expertise of 30 countries.
Chi Onwurah (Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West) (Lab)
My hon. Friend the Member for Folkestone and Hythe (Tony Vaughan) rightly raises the need for research into frontier AI safety, and I welcome the Government’s commitment to protecting the public from future AI risks. But AI affects all of our lives already. Today, my Committee launches an inquiry into algorithms, AI and their role in spreading online harm, as we saw in the terrible riots over the summer. As we build our evidence, how is the Minister building the evidence base on AI online harms and their social impact right now?
Peter Kyle
I am extremely grateful to the Chair of the Select Committee for choosing this as her first inquiry. It is an incredibly important area. This Government are committed to the algorithmic transparency recording standard. The previous Government reneged on their commitment to having individual Departments releasing their standard statement each year. This Government are committing to doing so again and will remain committed to reinforcing the fact that algorithms are there to serve people and not the other way round.
Jim Shannon (Strangford) (DUP)
There are many firms in Northern Ireland that have the capability and the experience to offer some advice on getting scientific research on AI safety. I know that the Minister is very interested in Northern Ireland, so has he had an opportunity to speak to companies in Northern Ireland so that we can play our part in how we take this matter forward?
Peter Kyle
I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for acknowledging my interest in Northern Ireland, which I have already visited since being appointed in order to meet some of the pioneering tech companies there. I will stay committed to ensuring that the Government recognise the talent across Northern Ireland, harnessing it for not just the domestic good but the global good.
Alex Baker (Aldershot) (Lab)
The Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology (Peter Kyle)
To protect people online, today I became the first Secretary of State to exercise the power to set out my strategic online safety proposals for Ofcom to consider. From increasing transparency to baking safety into social media platforms from the outset, those priorities will support Government in monitoring progress on acting where our laws are coming up short. I have also launched a new research project to explore the impact of social media on young people’s wellbeing and mental health.
Dr Cooper
Each year millions of patients in England interact with two or more different hospital trusts. Most of the trusts that commonly see the same patients do not use the same record systems. What steps is the Minister taking with Cabinet colleagues to utilise the Centre for Improving Data Collaboration and other available technology to improve data sharing across NHS hospital trusts?
Peter Kyle
What a pleasure it is to speak from the Dispatch Box to another Labour MP from Sussex.
That issue is a Department of Health and Social Care responsibility but, on its behalf, the Data (Use and Access) Bill will include a requirement that IT providers in the NHS have to meet information standards. That will deliver the interoperability needed so that data can be shared across the NHS, often for the very first time.
Alan Mak (Havant) (Con)
On the Opposition Benches we are proud that it was the last Conservative Government who created the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology. I am glad that Labour is following our agenda, and I look forward to my exchanges with the Secretary of State.
Under the last Conservative Government, Britain was home to more billion dollar tech start-ups than France and Germany combined, but last month an industry survey found that nearly 90% of tech founders would consider leaving Britain if Labour raised taxes on tech businesses. Yesterday, Labour U-turned on policy in Scotland, so today will the Secretary of State commit to reversing Labour’s jobs tax, which damages tech businesses across the entire country?
Peter Kyle
I welcome the hon. Gentleman to his post. We worked together on the all-party parliamentary group on the fourth industrial revolution, which he chaired, and I look forward to having a constructive relationship going forward.
The hon. Gentleman mentioned the last Government. Given the way the Conservatives are going, that will have been their last Government. To be honest, the circumstances that businesses, large and small, operating in the tech landscape have asked for are a smooth regulatory process—we have already delivered regulatory reform; reform to planning—we have delivered reform to the planning system; a stable financial settlement—we have delivered that with a Budget for—
Mr Speaker
Order. Please, this is topicals. We will see a very good example from the shadow Secretary of State.
Alan Mak
I thank the Secretary of State for his kind words, but he has punished labour: figures from his own Department show that workers will be losing out by nearly £800 each per year as a result of Labour’s Budget. Will he stand up to the Chancellor and oppose any further tax rises on Britain’s hard-working tech sector?
Peter Kyle
The Budget gave a pay rise to working people in this country and set the conditions for a stable economy, fixing the black hole left in our economy by the mismanagement of the last Government.
James Asser (West Ham and Beckton) (Lab)
Peter Kyle
Outside the classroom, the CyberFirst programme has engaged 250,000 young people across the UK. Those are the first steps; this Government will be going further.
Bob Blackman (Harrow East) (Con)
Peter Kyle
I am grateful for the hon. Gentleman’s question, because the first job I ever had was at the Body Shop working for Anita Roddick, and I joined her campaign against animal testing for cosmetics. She would be proud to see me at the Dispatch Box engaging in this conversation. Labour made a manifesto commitment to phase out animal testing in the long term. That is something we are committed to and something we are taking steps towards.
Ian Lavery (Blyth and Ashington) (Lab)
Peter Kyle
I am extremely grateful to my hon. Friend for raising one of the most serious issues of our time. The Online Safety Act 2023 requires providers, as part of their risk assessment, to consider specifically how algorithms will impact a user’s exposure to illegal content and children’s exposure to harmful content. I have introduced new measures to ensure that children are kept safe, and today I issued a statement of strategic priority to Ofcom to insist that it continues to do so in future.
David Davis (Goole and Pocklington) (Con)
Peter Kyle
The Government are working closely with individual universities, the university sector and our intelligence community to ensure that our research is not only world class but safe and secure.
Oral Answers to Questions
Peter Kyle Excerpts(2 months, 1 week ago)
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Emma Foody (Cramlington and Killingworth) (Lab/Co-op)
The Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology (Peter Kyle)
More than 85% of UK premises can now access a gigabit-capable broadband connection. Through Project Gigabit, more than a dozen suppliers are delivering contracts to bring fast, reliable broadband to more than 1 million more homes and businesses across the country. My team are making good progress and pushing forward with further plans to improve digital connectivity in hard-to-reach communities that would otherwise be missing out.
Emma Foody
Access to reliable broadband is essential to residents across my constituency, but for those who fall just outside commercial full-fibre broadband deployment areas, it remains a real issue that impacts their ability to work and study. What further action can the Government take to ensure that residents falling just outside current roll-out areas are not left behind?
Peter Kyle
My hon. Friend is a good advocate for her new constituency. I want everyone to understand that this new Department is not far removed from people’s lives, because we represent areas of technology all the way from space to digital infrastructure. We realise that every aspect of the Department’s work is connected to human beings trying to move forward and get on in life, and nowhere is that more important than in their ability to express their lives online. I can reassure her that we are ensuring that the market for digital provision is a functioning market that delivers for her constituents. In areas where the market is not as full as we would like, market providers need to work together, to ensure that all residents across her constituency have the connectivity they deserve.
Helen Whately (Faversham and Mid Kent) (Con)
My constituents in Throwley and Wichling have been battling for high-speed broadband. We thought we had it over the line, but in a recent telephone conversation Building Digital UK said that it was still to be confirmed. Would the Secretary of State be willing to meet me to discuss how we can ensure that those communities do not miss out again?
Peter Kyle
I can hear encouraging sounds from the hon. Lady’s colleagues asking for that meeting. Let me say at the outset that this Department wants to engage with everyone—[Hon. Members: “Hear, hear.”] I haven’t finished yet. We want to ensure that everyone in every constituency has full access to the connectivity that they need. With that in mind, the Minister responsible for the roll-out of these services will meet officials to ensure that the hon. Lady is given the attention that her constituents deserve.
Victoria Collins (Harpenden and Berkhamsted) (LD)
People and businesses in my constituency, like many elsewhere, are plagued with patchy access. Andy from Wheathampstead has found that the only way he can move on to working from home and running a business is to have expensive satellite broadband. Will the Secretary of State commit to ensuring that every home and business has access to gigabit broadband in rural and remote communities, and will he also ensure that there are bespoke solutions so that no home or business is left out?
Peter Kyle
Our manifesto commitment is to get to 99% coverage by 2030, and that is something we are determined to do. The programme run by BDUK for shared rural networks is technology-neutral. Along with the Minister responsible, I am encouraging BDUK as fulsomely as I can to ensure that every single technology emerging, as well as existing, is put to good use in that endeavour.
Kevin Bonavia (Stevenage) (Lab)
Mark Ferguson (Gateshead Central and Whickham) (Lab)
The Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology (Peter Kyle)
The UK’s R&D system is a central strength and vital for the future prosperity and wellbeing of our citizens. We are recognised for the strengths of our universities system and research base, and we are investing through UK Research and Innovation to continuously improve our R&D capabilities. In July we launched five new quantum technology hubs, which are delivered by UKRI and backed by over £100 million-worth of Government funding. This will ensure that the British people benefit from the potential of quantum technologies in a range of areas, from healthcare and computing to national security and critical infra- structure alike.
Mark Ferguson
Turbo Power Systems in my constituency is a great example of a global company built on research and development but with proud local roots. Would the Secretary of State be happy to visit it, as I have, to see its fantastic work?
Peter Kyle
Of course, I look forward to visiting Turbo Power Systems the next time I am in the region and seeing the amazing work it does. It is contributing to one of the key missions of this Government, which is to get to clean superpower status by 2030, and I look forward to seeing what it is doing to make that a reality.
Tom Gordon (Harrogate and Knaresborough) (LD)
I recently visited Yorkshire Cancer Research in my constituency. It is coming up to 100 years since it was founded, and it has created amazing drugs, such as tamoxifen, to extend people’s lives and help them fight cancer. We know that less than 5% of medical research investment is spent on R&D in Yorkshire. Given that we have 8% of the population, what more can the Secretary of State do to ensure that R&D opportunity investment is spread across our country?
Peter Kyle
It is incredibly important for this Government that we invest across the whole country, which is why we have invested £118 million in healthcare research and partnership hubs that are outside London and across the United Kingdom. I hope that this benefits the hon. Gentleman’s area too.
Mr Speaker
I call the Chair of the Science, Innovation and Technology Committee.
Chi Onwurah (Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West) (Lab)
The whole House recognises—certainly, the Government’s industrial strategy does—that in order to drive growth we need innovation clusters across the country. The last Government committed to increasing R&D spend outside of the greater south-east by 40% by 2030 as part of the failed levelling-up strategy. Will the Secretary of State say whether he intends to maintain that target, and/or what steps he will take to ensure that funding is available to drive regional growth and innovation?
Peter Kyle
I am extremely grateful to my hon. Friend for her question, and I congratulate her, on behalf the whole House, on her election as Chair of the Select Committee—I look forward to appearing before it soon and regularly thereafter. She raises an incredibly important point. I can say that this Government are committed to working with local and regional mayors to ensure that local growth plans and the partnerships with UKRI will benefit all regions. These include a £100 million innovation accelerator pilot and £80 million in launchpad programmes, all of which will meet the needs that she outlines.
Jim Shannon (Strangford) (DUP)
The Secretary of State has an interest in Northern Ireland, so can I ask him whether he holds statistics on how much research and development tax relief support has been issued to Northern Ireland in the last 12 months to help support science and technology? If he does not have the figures today, I would be happy for him to send them to me.
Peter Kyle
As always, I am grateful to hear from the hon. Gentleman. I will be in touch with any specifics that I can follow up with, but we are a Government committed to Northern Ireland, which I believe he will have seen from day one of this Labour Government back in July. I can also show that there have been great advancements in investment in Northern Ireland, which is why Northern Ireland has the highest coverage rates for fast fibre-optic broadband of any part of the United Kingdom. I want to be a champion for Northern Ireland, and I visited recently to ensure that everybody in the science and technology community there realises that this is a Government who are on their side.
Saqib Bhatti (Meriden and Solihull East) (Con)
The Secretary of State, in one of his first acts in his new role, cut £1.3 billion-worth of funding that would have been transformative for enabling cutting-edge research and development in Britain. I note that he has also ditched our ambition to turn Britain into a science and technology superpower. We set a target of £20 billion for R&D, which we met, but he has set no such target. Will he be setting a target, and can he today promise that there will be no cuts to R&D expenditure?
Peter Kyle
I congratulate the hon. Gentleman on his appointment to his Front-Bench role. Let us just be honest about what this Government inherited. That £20 billion black hole affects every single Department across Government. My Department inherited a situation where the previous Government—including the former Chancellor, the right hon. Member for Godalming and Ash (Jeremy Hunt), who is sitting on the Opposition Front Bench—committed at this Dispatch Box to an exascale project to which not one single penny had been committed. That was a fraud committed on the scientific community of our country by that Government, and I had to make the difficult decision to move forward—
Mr Speaker
Order. I think we have gone on long enough on that question.
Mike Reader (Northampton South) (Lab)
The Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology (Peter Kyle)
Keeping children safe online is the priority for this Government. The Online Safety Act 2023 places strict safety duties on online platforms, such as Roblox, to protect children from being groomed by online predators. Ofcom is the regime’s regulator and, by the end of this year, it will set out steps for the platforms to take to fulfil their duties.
Mike Reader
One of my constituents is a volunteer moderator on the Roblox platform. His group has identified and banned over 14,000 accounts involved in child grooming, exploitation and sharing indecent images. Does the Secretary of State agree that while we drive for tech innovation and investment, we must keep online safety at the heart of our strategy?
Peter Kyle
I extend my deepest sympathies to those who have been affected by the crimes that my hon. Friend outlines. The Online Safety Act—and its measures that will soon come into force—is there to address that concern directly. I want these powers to be used as assertively as possible. Just today, I have heard about another story concerning Roblox. I expect that company to do better in protecting service users, particularly children, on its platform.
Melanie Ward (Cowdenbeath and Kirkcaldy) (Lab)
The Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology (Peter Kyle)
At the international investment summit on Monday, some of the world’s biggest science and tech firms committed to investing billions of pounds in Britain, growing our economy and creating new jobs across our country.
In Rome last week, I launched the UK’s first online safety agreement with the United States. By working with our closest partner, home to the world’s biggest tech companies, we will create a safer online world for our children.
Finally, on behalf of the whole House, I congratulate Sir Demis Hassabis and Geoffrey Hinton on the Nobel prizes they won last week. Their extraordinary achievements are testament to the phenomenal level of AI talent fostered in Britain today.
Melanie Ward
There are numerous examples of the damage that out of control social media and mobile phone usage is doing to our young people, including in my area of Fife. The Courier newspaper has played an important role in highlighting this. Does the Secretary of State recognise the concerns that the safer phones Bill—the Protection of Children (Digital Safety and Data Protection) Bill—presented today by my hon. Friend the Member for Whitehaven and Workington (Josh MacAlister) and backed by many hon. Members across the House, seeks to address?
Peter Kyle
I pay tribute to The Courier for exposing some of these issues. We must keep children and vulnerable people safe when they are online. I intend to ensure that safety is baked in from the outset. When it comes to keeping children safe in this country, everything is on the table and I am open minded about how we move forward to achieve a much safer environment. Companies releasing products into our society should see that as a privilege, not a right. I have high expectations, on behalf of this country, to ensure that safety is baked in from the start.
Andrew Griffith (Arundel and South Downs) (Con)
Did the Secretary of State fully disclose to the Civil Service Commission the Labour links of one of the most senior civil service appointments, or the £66,000 donation he received?
Peter Kyle
Every donation that was made to this party in opposition has been declared in the appropriate ways. I am proud to be part of a party that raises standards in public life rather than votes to lower them. [Interruption.] I am also proud to be part of a party that comes into government and attracts talent to working for it, whereas when the Conservatives see talent, they libel it.
Andrew Griffith
Thanks to Whitehall Watch, we have a copy of the form. It is clear the Secretary of State failed to mention the conflicts of interest, as required by the ministerial code. In the words of the Prime Minister’s favourite pop star, some would say he is “Guilty as Sin”. Will he refer himself to the adviser on standards, or do we have to wait for the Prime Minister to finish organising VIP motorcades and do it for him?
Peter Kyle
There we have it—a party that attacks civil servants and the world’s greatest talent gravitating towards this party and this Government, to work for them. When he sees talent in Government, he libels it and saddles the taxpayer with the bill. This Government attract talent and I am proud of that.
Alex Baker (Aldershot) (Lab)
Peter Kyle
Farnborough has done an astonishing job at getting British aviation, which I have supported, into the global news. My dad served in the Fleet Air Arm back in the 1960s, and I went with him many times to Farnborough to see the planes he worked on up in the sky. As a country and a House, we should celebrate the fact that Farnborough is now moving into space. I am very grateful for what Farnborough is doing, and of course I will be there to participate in the event in any way that is meaningful.
Rebecca Smith (South West Devon) (Con)
Regulatory Innovation Office
Peter Kyle Excerpts(2 months, 2 weeks ago)
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The Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology (Peter Kyle)
British innovators and businesses are developing world-leading products and services powered by technologies such as artificial intelligence. However, they often encounter barriers and delays from red tape when trying to get started. This is why the Government pledged in our manifesto to establish a new Regulatory Innovation Office—a priority for ensuring innovation and promoting new opportunities for technologies through focused collaboration in the regulatory environment.
The RIO will help position Britain as the best place in the world to innovate by ensuring safety, speeding up regulatory decisions and providing clear direction in line with our modern industrial strategy. Today, I am pleased to update you on the early progress we have made to establish the RIO and foster safe innovation through regulation.
We are setting up the RIO as an office within DSIT, expanding existing functions such as the Regulatory Horizons Council and introducing new programmes to match our increased ambitions to support innovation. Consistent with our mission-driven approach, the RIO will work closely with other Departments to unlock change, including the Department for Business and Trade, which will continue to oversee wider cross-cutting work on regulator performance.
The new office will have three core pillars of activity: knowledge, strategy and capability building. The knowledge pillar will enhance our understanding of regulatory barriers to innovation, drawing on the work of the Regulatory Horizons Council. To address the most critical barriers, the strategy pillar will set clear priorities for regulatory innovation, aligning with our missions and industrial strategy, while ensuring safety. Through the capability building pillar, the RIO will work with regulators to ensure they have the necessary tools to achieve our shared goals. For example, it will build on the work of the regulators’ pioneer fund to provide strategic grant funding to regulators supporting the responsible development of novel or experimental regulatory approaches and on the work of the Regulators’ Innovation Network to share skills and disseminate best practice among regulators.
The RIO’s immediate focus will be on priority areas: drones and other autonomous technology, engineering biology, space, artificial intelligence and digital in healthcare. These four areas hold significant potential to drive innovation in support of the Government’s missions, particularly our mission to grow the economy. For example, the UK drone economy is projected to be worth up to £45 billion by 2030, if fully adopted. The cross-cutting nature of these emerging technologies, which do not fit neatly into existing regulatory frameworks can mean a slower process in getting them on to the market. The new office will work closely with Departments, including the Department for Transport, the Department of Health and Social Care, and the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs, ensuring that while the RIO actively collaborates on addressing regulatory barriers, regulatory responsibility remains with the relevant Department. The new office will also bring regulators together and work to remove unnecessary obstacles and outdated regulations to the benefit of businesses and the public, unlocking the power of innovation from these sectors to generate tens of billions of pounds for the UK economy in the coming years.
We will also shortly be progressing a campaign to appoint a chair. The chair will offer trusted advice and challenge to both officials and regulators, helping to shape the design of the new office and supporting its successful delivery.
In the coming months, we will work in partnership with industry and regulators to address barriers in these critical sectors and unlock new opportunities.
Alongside the RIO, I am pleased to share our wider progress in supporting regulatory innovation. These advancements demonstrate how we can foster an environment where innovation thrives by adapting our regulatory approach:
We are publishing on gov.uk our response to the Regulatory Horizon Council’s quantum report, accepting 11 of the 14 recommendations (and accepting in principle the remaining 3). This will see the UK become the first nation to outline its regulatory approach to quantum technologies, providing certainty to businesses and encouraging the responsible development of the sector. A copy of this report will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.
We are announcing the winners of the first round of the engineering biology sandbox fund. The sandbox will accelerate regulatory reforms for engineering biology-derived products and improve the quality of decision-making when assessing these products.
Working closely with the Cabinet Office, we are publishing voluntary screening guidance for the providers and users of synthetic nucleic acid. The guidance contributes to the UK’s vision of unlocking the societal and economic benefits of engineering biology research and innovation, while mitigating associated risks. The guidance keeps the UK at the forefront internationally of fostering responsible innovation in this transformative technology.
I am confident that together we can unlock Britain’s dynamism and innovation, and kick-start economic growth.
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Tackling Global Challenges: R&D Programme
Peter Kyle Excerpts(2 months, 2 weeks ago)
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The Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology (Peter Kyle)
The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology is focused on improving people’s lives by maximising the potential of research and development, science and technology to drive economic growth and wider societal benefits. It is our ambition to accelerate innovation, investment and productivity through world-class science, research and development. In line with this goal, the UK’s association to Horizon Europe, the world’s largest internationally collaborative research programme, empowers UK innovators and scientists to collaborate with colleagues from across the EU, as well as with other associated countries.
From 2028, the 10th Research and Innovation Framework Programme will replace Horizon Europe. It will be tasked with harnessing excellence-based research and development to support delivery of European security, sustainable prosperity and competitiveness.
On 26 September, DSIT published a position paper setting out the UK Government’s views on the potential shape and direction of FP10. We have published this position paper to support the work of the EU and member states in developing an impactful programme that delivers research and development across all disciplines of the highest quality to the benefit of all participants. A copy of the position paper was deposited in the Libraries of the House of Commons and the House of Lords.
The Government want to strengthen ties with our European neighbours and explore areas where we can boost our shared prosperity and security through mutually beneficial agreements. This includes ensuring that UK scientists, innovators, businesses, and institutions can collaborate with partners across Europe and beyond.
Given current geopolitical realities, we believe now is the time to address global challenges through collective action. We believe that through genuine openness, EU member states, the UK, and other like-minded countries can pool resources to effectively tackle priorities that affect us all. This includes using the power of research to harness emerging technologies, and in turn boost productivity and competitiveness. Our clear position is for FP10 to be based on openness and excellence, and to ensure the continuation of proven instruments within Horizon Europe.
In the paper, we advocate for an FP10 which:
Maintains excellence at the very core of FP10 to harness the full potential of Europe’s research and innovation capabilities across the entire research pipeline.
Enables the equal participation of like-minded associated countries in all areas of the programme from its very inception, with barriers removed to ensure collaboration on critical technologies between like-minded partners. Maintaining the principle of openness to those who share common goals and values will support the best research and collaboration to tackle these shared challenges.
Preserves the three-pillar architecture in Horizon Europe, maintaining stable and predictable support for proven elements within Horizon Europe to continue supporting discovery research, international collaboration opportunities and applied innovation. Through a careful balance between curiosity-driven research and applied research and innovation, FP10 should remain flexible and responsive to future global challenges.
We very much welcome opportunities for future discussion with researchers, innovators, businesses, institutions, the European Commission and EU member states as FP10 develops, given our many shared priorities.
We will, of course, be interested in potentially associating to FP10, assuming it is open, relevant, and provides good value for researchers and taxpayers.
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Technology in Public Services
Peter Kyle Excerpts(3 months, 3 weeks ago)
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The Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology (Peter Kyle)
I beg to move,
That this House has considered technology in public services.
It is the first time I have had the privilege of speaking under your chairmanship, Madam Deputy Speaker, and I am grateful for it. May I start by welcoming the hon. Member for Arundel and South Downs (Andrew Griffith) to his place? I had his job, and I realise just what a privilege it is. Today, I think we have nine Members seeking to catch your eye, Madam Deputy Speaker, to make their maiden speech. In advance, I offer them my very best wishes in this nervous moment. I look forward to hearing them. I am about to perform my maiden speech as a Secretary of State, so we are all in it together.
My mum was scanned three times in 18 months because of chest pain, and each time the scan came back clear. Not one of the scans detected the disease—lung cancer—that without warning would take her away from her family. Today, it takes an artificial-intelligence-powered scanner in Huddersfield hospital just seven seconds to detect the earliest signs of lung cancer. Seven seconds is all it takes to give somebody back decades with the people they love. I firmly believe that had my mother received that kind of care, she would still be alive today. I would have celebrated her 80th birthday just this weekend gone. It is that belief in the power of technology to change our lives for the better that will guide this Government’s approach.
It is all too easy to think of technology such as AI as being impersonal, alienating or distant, but the first thing I think about is people—the teachers in our schools who will deliver a personalised lesson to every pupil and help them fulfil their potential, and the patients in our hospitals who can access lifesaving drugs for diseases that until recently were untreatable. Technologies can change our everyday lives in ways that are both ordinary and extraordinary.
Dr Luke Evans (Hinckley and Bosworth) (Con)
The Secretary of State is making a fine maiden speech in his start at the Dispatch Box. As a previously practising doctor, I know that one thing that could really help is using some of the AI we see coming forward in the back office. The previous Government committed to a £3.4 billion NHS productivity plan. Are the Government still committed to taking that forward, because that investment would have significant benefits for staff and patients?
Peter Kyle
I am grateful for that intervention and welcome the hon. Member to his place, too. The Government take extremely seriously the role that AI and digital technologies have in productivity in all public services and, as my speech unfolds, I hope that he will hear more detail about the scale of our ambition. To take just one of the schemes that we will be unfolding, the fit for the future programme—a £480 million commitment in our manifesto—will be responsible for driving innovation through the NHS, with adoption of the very latest scanning equipment as well as other equipment right across the NHS in England. Those are just some of the things that we are committed to, and I assure him that the Government are wholly committed to this agenda.
Nothing about change is inevitable. The future of technology is ours to shape, and the opportunities it offers are ours to seize. My ministerial team and I want to see a future where technology enriches the life of every single citizen and a future with safety at its foundation, because only when people are safe and feel safe can they embrace technology and the possibilities that it presents.
Today, Britain’s tech sector is showing us what that future might look like, but far too often our public services are simply stuck in the past. The contrast could not be clearer. Much of the century so far has been defined by the sheer speed of technological advancement. The digital revolution has transformed our lives in ways that would have been unimaginable just a couple of decades ago. Most of us can access our bank accounts anywhere, at any time, and transferring money takes just seconds. Social media and video calls have given grandparents back precious time with their grandchildren, no matter how far away they may live. Young people live in a world where they can find thousands of jobs at the click of a mouse and work for a global brand without having to leave the community they love living in. Yet, as innovation has accelerated, the state has fallen further behind. Our citizens still need to contend with up to 190 different accounts, with 44 different sign-in methods, to access Government services online. Each of them is easy to lose or forget.
Max Wilkinson (Cheltenham) (LD)
This is obviously a positive debate, as there are so many benefits for us all. I could not remember 191 passcodes—I struggle to remember my own to log in every day in Parliament—but of course we have to underpin everything that we are talking about in terms of technology with cyber-security. In Cheltenham, we have a 4,900 member-strong community speaking for our industry in CyNam, and of course we have GCHQ, where thousands of people work every day; they do not ask for our thanks, but they deserve it in bucketloads.
The Secretary of State may be aware of the golden valley development in Cheltenham, which I recently sent him a letter about and which would include the national cyber innovation centre. I wonder whether he might like to find out more about that by sending members of his team—or he could come himself—to have a chat with me about it.
Peter Kyle
The hon. Gentleman, who I welcome to his place, spent quite a bit of time on his intervention, but I realise that there is simply so much to talk about in his constituency. I pay tribute to the organisations he referenced, including GCHQ and CyNam. The work that they do often goes unthanked, but it is absolutely essential to the security, wellbeing and economic welfare of our country. I certainly intend to visit as soon as I can, and it would be great to meet any of his representatives at any point; I am sure that my ministerial team will be willing to do so as well.
Jim Shannon (Strangford) (DUP)
One of the things that comes up all the time in my constituency is the great difficulties that elderly pensioners have with online commitments. They do not understand them, not because they are silly or anything, but because the processes are too technical for them. Will the Secretary of State assure me that when it comes to ensuring that pensioners are looked after, nothing will disadvantage them in any way when it comes to getting their moneys?
Peter Kyle
I am grateful for the hon. Member’s intervention, which was his first on me in this Parliament; I doubt that it will be the last. I will come to digital exclusion a bit later in my speech, which I hope will answer his question. If not, I am happy to return to the point. I will also return to cyber-security—I do hope that the hon. Member for Cheltenham (Max Wilkinson) learns his parliamentary sign-in codes as quickly as possible, as that would be a good start to a secure and safe parliamentary career.
I realise that every one of these log-in details is easy to forget. Engaging with the state has become a bureaucratic burden on working people—one that they can scarcely afford. Unbelievably, UK adults spend 3 billion hours each year dealing with Government-related admin; for the average citizen, that is 1.5 working weeks every single year. That is less time to spend with their kids when they get home after a long day’s work and less time to get outside or see friends to stay healthy and be happy—put simply, it is less time to do the things they like and to be with the people they love.
Debbie Abrahams (Oldham East and Saddleworth) (Lab)
I commend my right hon. Friend on his excellent, moving speech, which is his first from that Dispatch Box. My condolences about his mum. He will be aware that during the pandemic, the evidence review commissioned by the former Health Secretary exposed widespread inequity and racial bias in the use of oximeters—little gadgets used to look at oxygen in blood. It also revealed that algorithms used in artificial intelligence—in social security, for example—have inequity potential. How can we ensure that, along with all the benefits that he correctly mentions, there is also protection around equity?
Peter Kyle
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for making that incredibly important point. I hope she will see that one of the themes of my speech is indeed tackling inequality and inequity, as well as outlining how I believe this is one of the progressive causes of our time. If we are not careful and do not shape this agenda in the right way, with progressive values and safety baked in from the start of everything we do, we will not have the trust of the public, and every citizen will not benefit as they should.
My hon. Friend references issues in the life sciences aspects of the agenda. The Health Secretary and I are joined at the hip on this; we co-developed the life sciences action plan, which we are jointly rolling out, he and I both chair some of the work relating to the life sciences action plan, and the two of us—working for a Government and a Prime Minister who care so much about tackling the inequities that currently exist in society—will ensure that these issues will be central to the agenda as it unfolds.
Every day, people in Britain are confronted with a glaring technology gap between the private sector and public services—a gap that has become impossible to ignore, between the personalised and paper-shuffling, the efficient and the inconvenient, the time-saving and the time-wasting. That gap is not just a policy problem to solve but one of the great progressive causes of our time.
The previous Government promised us a small state, but after 14 years all they did was give us a slow one. They gave us a state that takes away time from those with too few hours to give: parents on low income who are already missing out on time with their families because they are working overtime just to make ends meet; and the people at the margins of our digital world, or excluded from it all together. By closing the technology gap, we will restore every citizen’s belief that the state can work for them.
When the previous Government set up the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, they recognised the transformative power of technology. They were right to do so, but if we want to lay the foundations for a decade of national renewal, we must be much bolder. We need to rewire Whitehall, because technology is much more than just another sector to support or a strategic advantage to secure; it is the foundation for every one of our national missions.
From kickstarting economic growth and making Britain a clean energy superpower, to breaking down barriers to opportunity and building an NHS that is fit for the future, our task is fundamentally different and our approach must be, too. That is why we have made DSIT the digital centre for Government. By bringing together digital, data and technology experts from across Government under one roof, my Department will drive forward the transformation of the state. That transformation will not just save people time; it will save taxpayers money, too. This Government are under no illusions about the scale of the challenge that we face.
Peter Kyle
I am grateful for the question. The delivery functions of digital transformation have moved from the Cabinet Office and other Departments into DSIT. Governance of such services remains shared between us, including a powerful role for Treasury oversight. We want to harness the best of Government, and we must do so by working collaboratively. That is the missions-led approach that the Prime Minister has championed, and it is a belief that I have baked into DSIT and the way that we work. I recognise that the challenges that we are seeking to solve with a powerful digital centre of Government can work only if we provide a resource that other Governments aspire to draw down on and work collaboratively on. That is the target that we have set ourselves and that we are setting about trying to achieve.
As I said, the Government are under no illusions about the scale of the challenge that we face. We promised to mend Britain’s broken public services. Now, we must do so with the worst set of economic circumstances since the second world war. With taxes at a 70-year high and a £22 billion black hole in the public finances, we cannot afford to duck the difficult decisions. The solution is not unchecked spending. It is long-term, sustainable economic growth, delivered in strategic partnership with business.
Chi Onwurah (Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West) (Lab)
My right hon. Friend is making an excellent speech. Women in business could add £200 billion to the economy if they were invested in at the same rate as men in business. The female founders community has been in uproar since it was announced that Innovate UK would award only half of the 50 £75,000 grants from its women in innovation fund, even though almost 1,500 women applied for them. Innovate UK has since reversed that decision. Would the Secretary of State meet those from the community to understand their experiences, find out what went wrong and ensure that Innovate UK better supports the Government’s growth mission by better supporting female founders?
Peter Kyle
I am extremely grateful for that intervention; my hon. Friend makes an incredibly important point. First, on the broad themes of under-represented communities in the tech sector, the issue is multifaceted. It is not just about some people being excluded from the products that are emerging from the tech sector; it is also about access to the great jobs that are being created in the tech sector itself. It is clear that there is regional and socioeconomic imbalance, and that there are other equality issues. I remember very well in the 1990s trying to get into university, and the system back then diverting people like me away from it. I had to apply four times and go back to secondary school at the age of 25 to get into university. Now I see a tech sector that is not dissimilar—sometimes it diverts people from certain backgrounds away from it or fails to attract into the sector those people with great potential.
We need to do better than that. We need to lead from Government. When I saw Innovate UK’s decision, I was unsettled, but I was very pleased that it then came out so rapidly—not only reversing the decision and going back to the full 50 grants but issuing a forthright apology for the mistake that led to the problem in the first place. Such issues should not emerge. I know that Innovate UK will learn those lessons, but we need to ensure that the Government are at the forefront of delivering support for the sector and creating the jobs and technology of the future, and making sure that it does so in an equitable way. I am grateful to my hon. Friend for giving me the opportunity to put that on the record, and I look forward to meeting the community she mentioned.
A missions-led approach to reforming our public services will harness the power of technology to make them more productive. Let us take artificial intelligence. It is not just doctors and teachers who are using AI to change the lives of the public they serve. In Greater Manchester, citizens advice centres are using Caddy, an AI-powered co-pilot tool developed with my officials to help staff and volunteers provide more helpful advice to the people who need it. Digital experts in my Department are thinking about how we can use AI to connect clean energy projects to the grid more quickly. Stories such as these are just the starting point, but they remain all too rare. Why should any citizen be denied cutting-edge healthcare, clean energy or a world-class education? Why should a vulnerable person struggling with eviction or debt struggle to get the help they need?
Adopting AI across health, education and policing could boost productivity by almost £24 billion a year. If we fail to do so, the benefits of AI could become the preserve of the privileged few. The urgency of our task demands decisive action, because people should not have to wait for better public services. Rightly, they expect that we will fix the public finances fast. That is why we will publish the AI action plan, led by Matt Clifford. The action plan will work out how we can make the very best use of AI to grow the economy and deliver the Government’s national missions. Then we will set up the AI opportunities unit to help make the action plan’s recommendations a reality.
My Department will transform public services for the people who use them, by working with Departments across Whitehall to pioneer safe, new and innovative applications for AI. Every one of those applications will depend on two things: digital infrastructure and data. These will be the driving force behind Britain’s digital transformation, better hospitals and schools, safer streets and transport that works for working people.
Mr Richard Holden (Basildon and Billericay) (Con)
I welcome the Secretary of State to his position. Transforming the public sector is something that I think we all, across the House, can get on board with. I wonder whether in any of the pay negotiations that have happened or will happen across Whitehall, the acceptance of technology in the public sector will be part of a quid pro quo for the future.
Peter Kyle
I think the right hon. Gentleman pits productivity-enhancing tools against the interests of workers. I do not believe that is the case. If we take my example of Huddersfield hospital, which I had the pleasure of visiting, people have been retrained because AI is very good at giving all-clears—20% of people were given all-clears. Therefore, the radiologists are retrained and come back on a higher pay scale for doing so, and productivity has gone from 700 scans a week to 1,000 scans a week. It is not only cost-neutral but cost-beneficial for the Department. Those are the kinds of productivity gains that enhance work and the satisfaction of workers in the workplace.
We are the Government. We have some agency in how this technology is used and rolled out and how it supports people in the workplace. We will ensure that we deliver value for money for the taxpayer and services that are cost-effective for the taxpayer, but we will also aspire to ensure that workers’ rights and satisfaction in the workplace increases. We are a Government who respect the work of the civil service and the value it provides to our country. We want to ensure that these tools sit alongside that ambition to deliver greater outcomes for the country, while ensuring that the civil servants who work so hard for our country take a bit more pleasure from their work, by being assisted by some of this technology that we will introduce to the work of Government.
Peter Kyle
It will be a pleasure to give way to the hon. Gentleman, but I do not want to cut into the time for the maiden speeches that are coming up, so I will not take too many more interventions after this.
Jim Shannon
I thank the Secretary of State for giving way, and I look forward to hearing the rest of his contribution. As someone who does not have much of a grasp of technology, I understand that many people have a fear. The Post Office Horizon scandal is an example of where the system should have said no but instead said yes—a real problem. When people were travelling with British Airways, the system conked out for 24 hours. Those are examples of things going wrong. What can the Secretary of State do to give us confidence that the system will work?
Peter Kyle
I am grateful for the hon. Gentleman’s intervention. As I will say in a moment, all of this is contingent on one key principle: building trust with the public. We need to do so through actions, not just words. We have to take the public with us every step of the way, because otherwise we will not have the permission to deliver the transformation that, ultimately, will be profoundly beneficial for them. I have striven throughout this speech and since I have had the pleasure of this role, in opposition and in government—
Dawn Butler (Brent East) (Lab)
I thank the Secretary of State for giving way; he is being generous with his time. On that point about the public being confident in any systems we roll out, does he agree that we need to ensure guard rails are in place so that organisations and companies know what their responsibilities are?
Peter Kyle
I am grateful. The interventions are building up, but I think I can answer both together to satisfy both Members. Yes, safety has to be built in at the outset and the public need to see that. We have inherited a problem with safety in our country. Women and girls do not feel safe outside after dark. Parents do not think their children are safe online. We have an issue with safety that we need to get a grip of. I feel incredibly strongly, as do Ministers and the Department, that we need to reassure people that as we embrace the technological advances that sit before us, we do so in a way that has safety built in from the outset. That is something we will do, and we have high expectations that others will do so too. As I will mention in a moment, we are setting statutory obligations on people at the pioneering side of AI.
Peter Kyle
I am afraid that I will not give way a third time, because others have to get in, and otherwise you will give me a glare, Madam Deputy Speaker—if the hon. Gentleman has not yet had one of those, when he does he will understand why I am moving forward at pace.
To build a smarter state, we need to build a state with digital infrastructure that is faster than ever, from the data centres powering cutting-edge AI to the broadband connections creating opportunities for all our communities. We must also manage public sector data as a national strategic resource. For far too long, public sector data has been undervalued and underused. We must replace chaos with co-ordination, and confusion with coherence. That is what the national data library will do. With a coherent data access policy and a library and exchange service, it will transform the way we manage our public sector data. It will have a relentless focus on maximising the value of that data for public good, on growing the economy and creating new jobs, and on delivering the data-driven AI-powered public services that they deserve.
The digital revolution promises to overhaul the way citizens engage with the state, but as with every technological revolution before it, we know that it brings risks. With those risks come uncertainty, instability and, for some, fear. We do not believe that people should have to choose between those two competing visions of our future: between safety and prosperity, and between security and opportunity. By shaping technology in the service of people, we will grow the economy, create jobs and lay the foundations for an inclusive society in which every citizen can see a place for themselves.
Gareth Snell (Stoke-on-Trent Central) (Lab/Co-op)
My right hon. Friend is making a fine speech, but could he say a little bit about the cross-Government conversations that should be happening about upskilling and the opportunities for workers? What is cutting-edge technology today can be obsolete in six to 12 months’ time. Is there a plan for a rolling programme of training and upskilling, so that workers who work with technology can keep pace with it as it develops over time?
Peter Kyle
I am extremely grateful to my hon. Friend—it is fantastic to see him back in his seat, and we can see no better reason why when he makes such incisive contributions. I am in very close touch with the Education Secretary over the skills agenda, and my Department is in very close touch with the Department for Education, because we can only seize these opportunities and ensure that they are available to everybody from every background if we get skills right. At the moment we are not, but there are some pioneering projects that I have visited. We ought to ensure that they are accessible to everybody who needs them. I can assure him that is essential to the conversations we will be having.
Even as we seize every opportunity to build a better future, we will responsibly manage the threats that new technologies pose to our security. The first duty of any Government is to keep our nation safe. Thanks to years of neglect, Britain has been left catastrophically exposed to cyber-attacks, with disastrous consequences for public services and working people alike. Over 10,000 out-patient appointments were postponed following this year’s attack on the NHS in London—that is 10,000 people forced to wait to access the care they needed. If we do not act, we know there will be more attacks to come, and more hours lost in our hospitals and our schools. The Prime Minister has been clear that in an ever more volatile world we will do what is necessary to defend our country from those who seek to do us harm. That is why we are introducing the cyber security and resilience Bill, which will shore up our cyber-defences and protect our public services in the decades to come.
David Reed (Exmouth and Exeter East) (Con)
Supercomputing and artificial intelligence are key drivers for making us more cyber-resilient. Will the Secretary of State please clarify why £1.3 billion has been cut from that budget?
Peter Kyle
I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for his intervention and I welcome him to his place. It is good to see him participating in these debates. It gives me the opportunity to respond to his question. He asks why I cut something. Can I just point out to him that I cannot cut something that did not exist in the first place? We have a former Prime Minister who announced a scheme but allocated not a single penny towards it. We have a former Chancellor of the Exchequer who at this Dispatch Box in his last Budget announced a scheme, but did not go back to his Department and allocate a single penny towards it. I did not cut anything, because nothing existed in the first place. Words matter when you are in government, and they must be followed through with action. I am afraid that the previous Government were all words and no action.
That is why we will be bringing forward binding regulations on the handful of companies that are developing the most powerful AI systems of tomorrow. The principle behind both pieces of legislation is simple: trust. We will rebuild Britain’s public services. Public trust in technology will be our cornerstone. To earn that trust, we will always put people’s safety first. We must also show that technology can be a force for good, and that is what we will do. Every person who receives the kind of scan my mother did not receive, every family with years longer together, every child with an education that gives them the opportunities their parents never had—every one of those people is a testament to the power of technology to change lives for the better. And yet for each of those people there are so many more who are missing out on an education that could change their life, or on the scan that could save it. By closing the technology gap, this Government will ensure that every person benefits from the digital public services that they deserve, and we will give Britain’s future back.
Andrew Griffith
I could not be happier to debate that topic, but I am very conscious of the number of Members who, I was told, are trying to make their maiden speeches, and I think it is the case, Madam Deputy Speaker, that every intervention we take at this stage potentially jeopardises their chance of doing so. In short, however, there is a very fine place for solar: it is on the roofs of warehouses, car parks, supermarkets and new homes, where appropriate, but it is not on productive farmland.
In government, we significantly increased spending on public sector research—by 29%, to £20 billion in the current financial year—and our recent manifesto pledged to increase that by a further 10% over the life of this Parliament. May I ask the Secretary of State, and the Minister who will wind up the debate, if they can pledge to match that ambition to a sector that is desperate to see such certainty of funding?
The Secretary of State has my sympathy. I cannot imagine how difficult his phone call with the University of Edinburgh, which had already invested £30 million in the exascale supercomputer, must have been. This was a national facility that would have enabled significant advances in AI, medical research, climate science and clean energy innovation. The investment was fully costed, amounting over many years to what the NHS burns through in three days. There seems to be confusion at the Treasury: just because semiconductors are becoming smaller in size, it does not mean that the Secretary of State’s Department must follow suit.
Peter Kyle
The shadow Secretary of State said that the exascale project was fully costed. Could he confirm that it was fully funded too?
Andrew Griffith
Yes. The exascale investment was being delivered through UK Research and Innovation, an enterprise that receives nearly £9 billion every single year and that, under our manifesto, would have had a growing level of investment across the entirety of the spending review. There were plans in place to deliver the investment, which is why Edinburgh was so confident that it would be delivered. It was a clear priority in our spending plans and communicated in writing by the Secretary of State’s predecessor to the chief executive of UKRI. Notwithstanding the fact that the Treasury seems to have got his tongue immediately upon taking office, a project that the Treasury never loved seems to have been mysteriously cancelled. The project was being delivered by UKRI, an organisation with significant financial resources that far exceeded the £1.3 billion cost of the supercomputer. It is the wrong decision at the wrong time.
Andrew Griffith
The last Government did not do that; it was an independent institute that had multiple sources of funding. As the Secretary of State and his Ministers will discover, funding of that nature is competitive funding that is allotted by independent research councils. It would not have been within the gift of me or any other Minister to abrogate that competitive funding process.
Inevitably, there are projects that are funded and projects that are not funded, but the exascale computer was a very clear priority. It sat within the overall financial resources of UKRI and, under our Government, there was an expanding level of resource. People should have absolute confidence that the programme would have continued and been delivered in the context of the much larger amount of money that is spent through the Department, but by the Government as a whole. That was a good decision, and it would have had huge benefits to the UK. The chief executive of UKRI has talked at length about the benefits, and I think the Government are making the wrong decision. I urge the Secretary of State to go back, lock horns with the Treasury and seek to continue the project before it is too late, before contracts are cancelled and before technology is not procured.
Peter Kyle
The hon. Gentleman has said quite clearly that it was announced in the Budget, but it was contingent on a manifesto that had not even been written at the time of the Budget, in order to deliver the money promised in the Budget. He is an accountant by trade. Could he explain to the House why a Chancellor of the Exchequer standing up and making a commitment for which he has not one penny allocated until potentially winning a general election, which has not been called, is irresponsible?
Andrew Griffith
The Secretary of State will understand that at any point in time, a Department may go through a triennial spending review, although actually the triennial spending review had not fully happened. Governments also make forward-looking commitments and declarations of intent, and commission work, whether from arm’s length bodies such as UK Research and Investment or from officials in the Department, to deliver their priorities. I do not think that the Secretary of State disputes that this was a clear priority. Looking at the aggregated spend through UKRI and the different funding councils that were going to deliver the supercomputer project, including the Science and Technology Facilities Council, there is no question but that it would have been delivered. It was not contingent on growth; a Government of any persuasion, advised by their independent civil servants, would have delivered the programme through organisations such as UKRI. That is why Edinburgh University was so committed to it. It had been announced by the previous Government, and equipment was being procured.
As we seek to compete with modern states that are busily investing in exactly this sort of facility, it is important to recognise that it is wrong to simply recoil from the project. It is not something that the Treasury ever loved, and the Secretary of State has to push hard, as we did, but it is wrong to allow a step back on that brilliant project, which would unlock so many of the benefits that the Secretary of State talked about this evening. Again, I ask him to lock horns with the Treasury, and use every opportunity to see what can be done to revisit the decision. It is a very important project, and part of an ambition that I think we share for the future of this country.
In conclusion, the first duty of government should be to do no harm, and we cannot afford to get this agenda wrong. We will judge the Government by their actions. Where they are bold in order to deliver better outcomes at a lower cost to the taxpayer, they can count on our full support. We will help this progressive Secretary of State to face down the union luddites in his party. We on the Opposition Benches will support efforts to place the private sector at the heart of reform of the NHS, but the people of the UK cannot afford half-hearted efforts, the Treasury curtailing the departmental budget to pay for public sector pay rises elsewhere, or the abandonment of real ambition that can unlock the potential of technology to benefit this country for years to come.
European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts: Contingent Liability Notification
Peter Kyle Excerpts(3 months, 3 weeks ago)
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The Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology (Peter Kyle)
I am tabling this statement for the benefit of hon. and right hon. Members to bring to their attention two new contingent liabilities for the activities of the Department of Science, Innovation and Technology and the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts, hereon referred to as ECMWF.
The UK has agreed to fully fund the construction of a new headquarters for ECMWF on the University of Reading campus. This was a political commitment made to member states at the ECMWF council meeting in December 2021. To enable this, an agreement for lease has been negotiated with UoR to secure land and rights to build.
ECMWF is an independent international and intergovernmental organisation supported by 35 states, including the UK. ECMWF are considered experts in their field and attract talented scientists and engineers from across the world. The provision of the new ECMWF HQ will ensure approximately 270 to 300 skilled roles remain in the UK along with significant investment in the UK economy over the life of the building, generating a net present value of £97 million. The continued hosting of ECMWF will help to maintain the UK’s reputation as a world leader in weather and climate science.
Two indemnities are required by the university. The first is due to the university having incurred costs on the basis that the Department will subsequently complete the project. The costs cover relocating their art department to make space for the HQ and carrying out significant works in clearing the site by, amongst other things, demolishing existing buildings, removing asbestos and other contaminants and decommissioning services so that the site will be ready for development. The university are seeking an indemnity to ensure they would be partially reimbursed, should the project not be completed. They will not move forward with the project without this protection so, without these indemnities, the deal to secure the site would be jeopardised along with the project as a whole.
This indemnity will be triggered should the Department not achieve specific planning and construction milestones by specified deadlines. Since the planning requirements are nearly fulfilled with the grant of planning already in place, the risk of this indemnity crystalising is considered to be very low. The maximum costs to the Government are £14.4 million including VAT. If crystalised, the cost is likely to be the full capped value.
The detailed planning consent application was made in October 2023, with the grant of planning received on 24 July 2024. A six-week period following grant of planning permission during which the decision to grant planning permission could be judicially reviewed will expire in early September 2024. In the event that that period expires without an application for judicial review being made, this indemnity will fall away entirely. This is considered to be likely given that the planning application was not contentious.
The second indemnity relates to vacation and handover of the HQ at the end of the 50-year lease. If ECMWF does not vacate the premises at the end of the contractual term of the lease, or if the lease is otherwise determined before the end of the contractual term, and UK Government cannot return the building to UoR with vacant possession because ECMWF do not vacate, UK Government would be liable for UoR’s associated costs. Given ECMWF’s privileges and immunities, the inviolable status of its premises and the uncertain basis of its occupation of the property under domestic landlord and tenant law, UoR are concerned about their ability to recover vacant possession after the end of the lease if ECMWF were to remain in occupation. This risk is being held by UK Government as part of the lease agreement.
The UK would be under an obligation as host nation to provide alternative accommodation to allow ECMWF to move before the end of the tenancy, unless they depart the UK. There is a strong possibility that the university would agree to extend the lease or agree a new lease. UK Government and ECMWF are obliged to work together to avoid this kind of situation.
Costs in the event of this occurring are uncapped. Property and legal costs are estimated by the Government Property Agency to be around £500,000, or £600,000 including VAT. Other costs cannot be estimated at this stage due to the uncertainties involved. Costs comprise liabilities, expenses—including solicitors’ and other professional costs—claims and damages. Losses, including any diminution in UoR’s interest in the property arising as a result of the breach of covenant to provide vacant possession at the end of the lease, would also have to be covered. The Department would be responsible for such costs.
Although the agreement for lease and lease will be entered into by the Secretary of State for the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, the Department as ultimate sponsor and funder of the project will have budgetary responsibility within Government for them, and will be responsible for any payments due under the first indemnity and second indemnity. The Department are seeking approval of the indemnities as ultimate sponsor and funder of the project.
The Government will be subject to the new contingent liabilities, and I will be laying a departmental minute today containing a description of the liabilities undertaken.
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AI Opportunities Action Plan
Peter Kyle Excerpts(4 months, 3 weeks ago)
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The Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology (Peter Kyle)
Artificial intelligence has enormous potential to drive economic growth, through productivity improvements and technological innovation, and to stimulate more effective public service design and delivery. These are opportunities the United Kingdom cannot afford to miss and that is why AI, alongside other technologies, will support the delivery of our five national missions. Through targeted action this Government will support the growth of the AI sector, enable the safe adoption of AI across the economy and lead the way in deploying it responsibly in our public services to make them better.
Today, I am setting out our plans to create an ambitious AI opportunities action plan, and our next steps on the regulation of frontier AI systems.
I have appointed tech entrepreneur and chair of the Advanced Research and Invention Agency, Matt Clifford CBE, to develop the AI opportunities action plan. It will set out how Government can support the growth of the AI sector and compete on the global stage, while also including actions designed to boost the responsible adoption of AI across all parts of the economy. This plan will identify ways to accelerate the use of AI to improve people’s lives by making services better and developing new products.
The action plan will also address key AI enablers such as the UK’s compute and broader infrastructure requirements; how this infrastructure is made available to industry as well as researchers; and how to develop, attract and retain top AI talent. To develop the action plan, Matt Clifford will engage with academic, industry and civil society experts.
Matt Clifford will deliver a set of recommendations to me by September. To support implementation of the action plan, an AI opportunities unit will be established within the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology.
Delivering the plan will play a vital role in driving up productivity and kick-starting economic growth. Estimates from the IMF show that while the exact economic impact hinges on the wider development and adoption of AI, and realisation could be gradual, the UK could ultimately see productivity gains of up to 1.5% annually.
While AI has the potential to boost our productivity, unlock new sources of growth, and improve the quality and efficiency of our public services, we know that advanced capabilities also present risks. In the King’s Speech on 17 July, the Government set out our intention to legislate in line with our manifesto commitment to place requirements on those working to develop the most powerful artificial intelligence models.
This legislation will place the AI safety institute on a statutory footing, providing it with a permanent remit to enhance the safety of AI over the longer term.
Our proposals will be highly targeted and will support growth and innovation by ending regulatory uncertainty for AI developers, strengthening public trust, and boosting business confidence. They will avoid creating new rules for those using AI and will instead apply to the small number of developers of the most powerful AI models with a focus on the AI systems of tomorrow and not today.
We will shortly launch a consultation on these legislative proposals, to harness the insights and expertise of the AI industry, academia and civil society.
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