Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to their White Paper A pro-innovation approach to AI regulation, published on 29 March, and following the introduction of the Algorithmic Transparency Recording Standard, what assessment they have made of the case for statutory transparency obligations for public sector use of automated decision-making.

The government has made transparency around automated decision-making a priority through the publication of the Algorithmic Transparency Recording Standard (ATRS).

The ATRS is a maturing standard which is being progressively promoted and adopted across the public sector. It is still evolving alongside policy thinking and government understanding of the complexities, scope, and risks around its use. Enshrining the Standard into law at this point of maturity might hinder the ability to ensure it remains relevant in a rapidly developing technology field. We remain committed to reevaluating our position on legislative change in the future, once the policy and the Standard have matured further.

While the government currently has no comprehensive view of the full range of automated decision-making tools currently used by public authorities, several steps have been taken to increase compliance with the Standard in the absence of legislation. The ATRS has been endorsed by the government’s Data Standards Authority. Since its publication, it has been piloted with a variety of public sector organisations across the UK and the published records can be openly accessed via GOV.UK. It is currently being rolled out more widely across the public sector with a view to embedding it into internal governance processes and increasing compliance.