EU Technological Sovereignty Package
Debate between Viscount Colville of Culross and Baroness Lloyd of Effra(1 week, 3 days ago)
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Baroness Lloyd of Effra (Lab)
The AI Security Institute is one of the pre-eminent institutions in the UK in AI development and the transformations we are seeing. It works very closely with other AI security institutes. I think it was only two weeks back that it was meeting other similar institutions, developing common standards and approaches to assessment, which is one of the important ways that we keep a baseline across the globe for how we should appraise frontier models as they are developed.
Viscount Colville of Culross (CB)
My Lords, when the Government support a UK sovereign AI fund, will UK government investment be focused on models trained only on properly sourced and remunerated material?
Baroness Lloyd of Effra (Lab)
The AI sovereign fund invests in companies based in the UK. They must adhere to UK law, including UK copyright law, for those investments made in the UK.
Artificial Intelligence: Legislation
Debate between Viscount Colville of Culross and Baroness Lloyd of Effra(2 weeks ago)
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Baroness Lloyd of Effra (Lab)
The UK’s approach is to develop our sovereign capabilities. We are investing in infrastructure and in AI growth zones. We are working to ensure that everyone in this country benefits from the potential of AI and are upskilling 10 million workers. In respect of the regulatory environment, AI can be adopted in many different areas: it can advance drug discovery, or it can support teachers in classrooms so that they have more face-to-face time with pupils. It is right to take a context-specific regulatory approach.
Viscount Colville of Culross (CB)
My Lords, the Government have recognised that greater transparency about AI model training data would help rights holders to assert their rights. Can the Minister tell the House why she has not committed in principle to statutory transparency requirements for commercial AI developers?
Baroness Lloyd of Effra (Lab)
We set out our approach in March in respect of the issues around copyright and AI. We acknowledged that the approach we had taken previously in respect of the proposals we had put forward did not command the support of the creative industry or the technology industry—or indeed of noble Lords. We have set out a plan to take all that forward over the summer and beyond.
Employment: Artificial Intelligence
Debate between Viscount Colville of Culross and Baroness Lloyd of Effra(2 weeks, 3 days ago)
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Baroness Lloyd of Effra (Lab)
On investment in the regions, the Government are supporting huge investment in AI through AI growth zones and through investment in people, with the £10 million jobs boost and £187 million to support young people and those returning to work to get the skills that they need. These programmes are developed centrally and delivered in partnership with local organisations and civil society. We are investing in infrastructure and we are investing in people.
Viscount Colville of Culross (CB)
My Lords, I am concerned about the adverse effect that AI is having on employment in the creative sector. The Communications and Digital Committee, in its recent report on AI and copyright, recommended protections against both unauthorised digital replicas and harmful AI outputs in the style of a creator’s work. The consultation that the Government announced in March appears to cover only digital replicas. Will the Minister tell the House whether she will address harmful “in the style of” outputs?
Baroness Lloyd of Effra (Lab)
The noble Viscount is right that we have a programme of work looking at digital replicas. We will be consulting on that. The fact that there are many who are affected by this—musicians, politicians and everyday citizens—means that it is an extensive piece of work. I will take back his question on the precise remit of this consultation and reply to him.
Social Media Ban for Under-16s
Debate between Viscount Colville of Culross and Baroness Lloyd of Effra(1 month, 2 weeks ago)
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Baroness Lloyd of Effra (Lab)
I thank the noble Lord, Lord Nash, for his comments and, moreover, for his engagement over the last months—in fact, it was longer—with me on this topic. We will be able to continue that engagement—obviously, there will be scrutiny in the House—but also outside the Chamber. We committed to sharing the regulations with opposition spokespeople and the chairs of the Select Committees for scrutiny, and we will follow through on that.
On the definition and the scope, we plan to use the same model as Australia; that would capture user-to-user platforms whose purpose is to enable social interaction and which allow users to post material, alongside algorithms. The details of how those criteria will apply in the UK will be set out later this year. We have also said that purely educational services obviously will not be in scope.
On the question of enforcement, as I mentioned earlier, this is an incredibly important part of our thinking and approach. The Secretary of State and the department have interacted frequently with Ofcom. Noble Lords have made clear the importance of effective enforcement by Ofcom, and we have written to Ofcom to ask it to ensure that we can have robust and effective enforcement of this ban. The CEO of Ofcom has written back, confirming that that is what it will take forward.
Finally, on geotagging and location services, I will write to the noble Lord on that specific question.
Viscount Colville of Culross (CB)
I thank the Minister for the comments she has just made. She has just said that Ofcom will have a consultation on which age verification method will be used for identifying under-16s. However, I understand that the preferred form of age verification in this new social media regime will be ID documents, because the Government do not trust the age-verification technology for identifying under-16s. Will the Government continue to incentivise tech companies to come up with reliable technological solutions in this area? Surely, it is the responsibility of the tech companies to come up with this technology.
AI Growth Lab
Debate between Viscount Colville of Culross and Baroness Lloyd of Effra(4 months ago)
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Viscount Colville of Culross (CB)
My Lords, any AI growth in this country will depend on trust between tech companies and content rights holders. This will depend on robust transparency requirements being created, and quickly. However, the Government, in their report on AI and copyright last week, said they were going to sit on their hands and monitor the effects of transparency rules in other countries. Why is this country not taking the lead on this crucial issue to create a world-class, transparent copyright system for AI development?
Baroness Lloyd of Effra (Lab)
As the noble Viscount knows, we published our report and impact assessment on AI and copyright and we have outlined three or four specific areas we will be taking forward, including digital replicas, AI labelling and looking at mechanisms for creatives to control their works online. It is clear that we need to keep considering the approach and we have not as yet found a solution that will address all the concerns.
EU Digital Services Act and Regulation
Debate between Viscount Colville of Culross and Baroness Lloyd of Effra(4 months, 2 weeks ago)
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Baroness Lloyd of Effra (Lab)
The UK has taken decisive action to strengthen competition and fairness in digital markets. In January 2025, Parliament equipped the CMA with new powers to boost competition and innovation in digital markets. In May, the Government issued a clear steer to the CMA to prioritise this work and align action with international jurisdictions, including the EU. The UK and CMA engage regularly with EU counterparts as both regimes begin operation to help maintain close alignment on emerging issues.
Viscount Colville of Culross (CB)
My Lords, the EU already has AI legislation. Do the Government intend to bring forward their own legislation on AI and how to regulate it?
Baroness Lloyd of Effra (Lab)
Our approach is to have regulators who are sector-specific and have the expertise to look at how AI is affecting the companies they regulate and its impact.
Children: Social Media
Debate between Viscount Colville of Culross and Baroness Lloyd of Effra(7 months, 2 weeks ago)
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Baroness Lloyd of Effra (Lab)
I do not follow that logic at all. People have different views on online content, and trying to balance the potential benefit that children can have from accessing the digital world with trying to protect them from the harms that they can also see is exactly what joins together many around this House and is exactly what we are trying to navigate through the Online Safety Act.
Viscount Colville of Culross (CB)
My Lords, the social media ban on under-16s in Australia is well-intentioned but is not the right solution to protect children from harms. Does the Minister agree with the Molly Rose Foundation that the ban risks creating a cliff edge for young people who at 16 will suddenly be exposed to a poorly regulated online space? Does she agree that there should be strengthened regulation on social media platforms so they are safe for children rather than excluding them altogether?
Baroness Lloyd of Effra (Lab)
The noble Viscount makes a really good point—one I was trying to make not as eloquently earlier—that there are good reasons for children to be online. Children of all ages can benefit from being online, but appropriate protections need to be in place, protections which do not lead to unintended consequences. I think our approach, which we are putting in step by step and backing Ofcom to enforce, is the right one at this stage. We are looking very carefully at the evidence as it emerges and looking very carefully at other countries’ experience and not taking things off the table if the evidence leads us in that direction.
Artificial Intelligence Legislation
Debate between Viscount Colville of Culross and Baroness Lloyd of Effra(8 months, 1 week ago)
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Baroness Lloyd of Effra (Lab)
The noble Viscount asks about digital ID, as he highlights a proposal which was announced a few months ago. Digital ID will help make it easier for people to access the services they are entitled to and prevent illegal working. It will streamline interactions with the state, saving time and cutting frustrating paperwork. A public consultation on the digital ID will launch in the coming few weeks, to ensure the system is secure, trusted and inclusive. I will take back his specific question on the coverage of the consultation coming up.
Viscount Colville of Culross (CB)
I thank the noble Lord. The World Economic Forum has said that dis- and misinformation is the number one threat to economic stability. Generative AI has hugely increased the scale of that threat. There is concern from AI safety groups that companies are not adequately tackling the problem. Can the Minister tell the House whether the Government will take this as seriously as they do cyberattacks?
Baroness Lloyd of Effra (Lab)
I thank the noble Viscount for his question. Strengthening media literacy education is incredibly important: it helps people navigate the growing presence of AI-generated content and it is important in schools and further than that. Noble Lords will remember that we have welcomed the report of the independent Curriculum and Assessment Review, which recommends that children in schools should be taught how to spot fake news and disinformation, including AI-generated content, and help develop critical thinking skills to protect themselves online.