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Category: Technology

  • Oliver Dowden – 2024 Speech on CrowdStrike – IT Outage

    Oliver Dowden – 2024 Speech on CrowdStrike – IT Outage

    The speech made by Oliver Dowden, the Conservative MP for Hertsmere, in the House of Commons on 22 July 2024.

    May I begin by welcoming the hon. Lady to her role and thanking her for advance sight of the statement? In that role I know she will be supported by a dedicated team of civil servants, who represent the very best of public service. I have no doubt that they will serve her as well as they did me.

    The hon. Lady will be aware of the enormous challenges facing this Government and those around the world in relation to cyber-security. As I warned when I was the responsible Minister, threats to public services and critical national infrastructure come from a range of challenges, from hostile state actors to human error and design flaws. Last week we saw those challenges vividly brought to life. Following the corrupted antivirus update by CrowdStrike on Friday, 8.5 million Microsoft devices globally were rendered unusable. That left airports disrupted, patient records temporarily lost and GPs unable to access important patient data, creating significant backlogs. That is more than an inconvenience.

    I pay tribute to all those working in our public services for the efforts they undertook over the weekend to restore those services, and to the work of dedicated cyber specialists across Government, including in the National Cyber Security Centre. In government we undertook a wide range of measures to enhance the nation’s cyber-security: creating the National Cyber Security Centre, introducing secure by design, setting cyber-resilience targets, launching GovAssure and transforming the oversight of governmental cyber-security.

    I note, as the hon. Lady said, that the Government intend to build on that progress by bringing forward a cyber-security and resilience Bill. Will she therefore outline the timetable for the Bill, and will the Government consider mandatory cyber-security targets for the UK public sector? Are the Government considering obligations to ensure that infrastructure is designed to be resilient against common cause problems, such as this one? What steps are being taken to enhance cyber-security in the devolved Administrations and in parts of the public sector such as the NHS, which are operationally independent?

    Specifically in relation to this incident, what assessment has been made of the prevalence of CrowdStrike within critical national infrastructure? What further reassurance can the Government give in relation to the timetable for full recovery of key systems and data? In particular, can the Minister assure employees that this month’s payroll will not be adversely affected?

    Britain’s cyber industry is world leading. Cyber-security now employs more than 60,000 people and brings in nearly £12 billion-worth of revenue annually. This transformation was in part due to our £5.3 billion investment, which launched the country’s first national cyber-security strategy. I therefore urge the Government—I see the Chancellor in her place—to continue such investment.

    Incidents such as that of CrowdStrike should not deter us from the path of progress. We must embrace digitalisation and the huge improvements to public services that it offers. The adoption of artificial intelligence across Government is the closest thing we have to a silver bullet for public sector productivity. However, if we are to command public confidence, people must be assured that technology is safe, secure and reliable. Such incidents demonstrate how reliant the Government and public services are on large technology companies, and how much responsibility they have for the services that have become critical to people’s lives and livelihoods. That is why, in government, I called for us to work more closely with leading technology firms to address these shared challenges. The best solution is partnership. To that end, what further engagement will the Minister undertake with Microsoft, CrowdStrike and the wider sector to ensure that there is no such recurrence?

    The task for us all is to build on existing progress that has transformed Britian’s cyber defences, and to enhance protections for British families, businesses and the very heart of Government. In that mission, the Government can rely on the support of the Opposition.

    Ellie Reeves

    I thank the shadow Minister for his contribution and his questions. In particular, I echo the thanks to all those in Departments across the civil service who were involved in dealing with the outage last Friday and in mitigating its effects. I set out in my statement that our cyber-security and resilience Bill, which was included in the King’s Speech, will strengthen our defences and ensure that more digital services are protected. That is a priority for this Government. The Bill will look at expanding the remit of regulation, putting regulators on a stronger footing and increasing reporting requirements, so that the Government can build a better picture of cyber-threats. We will consider the implications of Friday’s incident as we develop that legislation, but rest assured that we are working across Government to ensure resilience.

    As the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster said in his statement on the covid inquiry module 1 report, he will lead a review assessing our national resilience to the full range of risks that the UK faces, including cyber-risks.

  • Ellie Reeves – 2024 Statement on CrowdStrike – IT Outage

    Ellie Reeves – 2024 Statement on CrowdStrike – IT Outage

    The statement made by Ellie Reeves, the Minister Without Portfolio, in the House of Commons on 22 July 2024.

    On Friday 19 July, we saw a CrowdStrike software update on Microsoft systems result in a major global IT outage. It caused significant impacts around the world. Impacts were seen in the transport sector, with flights grounded in Europe and the US, and delays and cancellations here in the UK. Live train departure boards were impacted during the morning rush hour, and some media outlets lost the ability to provide live coverage. The outage caused substantial inconvenience for passengers hoping to travel for the summer holiday getaway on the busiest travel weekend of the year. Airports and airlines across the UK had measures in place to maintain safe operations, support passenger welfare, extend operating hours and deploy additional staff to support late-running operations and keep people moving where possible. As with all incidents, the sector will review its response and implement any learnings.

    More concerningly, large parts of the local UK healthcare system lost access to test results and appointment information, affecting mostly GP services. Tried and tested NHS contingency plans were enacted and services are expected to be operating at full capacity in the next few days. Small businesses without dedicated IT support systems were heavily impacted due to disruption to card-only payment systems and ATMs, with many resorting to operate cash-only while firms worked to fix their systems. Many firms were able to get back online quickly and the remainder are expected to restore operations this week.

    Officials from the National Cyber Security Centre quickly established that the outages were not the result of a security incident or malicious cyber-activity. The cause was instead identified to be a flawed CrowdStrike software update that caused Windows machines to crash.

    On Friday morning, CrowdStrike issued guidance on how to solve the problem, giving users a manual fix for each affected device or system. I now believe that CrowdStrike is in the process of implementing an automated update, which can be applied remotely and should therefore speed up recovery. However, there are still residual impacts from the failed update, and it is important that we continue to monitor the situation and the longer-term impacts to UK sectors and secondary impacts from international disruption.

    Ever since the incident occurred, the Government have worked closely with both Microsoft and CrowdStrike. My Cabinet Office officials have been leading co-ordination of the Government response across all impacted sectors of the economy. That included close monitoring of affected public services to ensure that business continuity plans were enacted and services were supported as they came back online. Two Cobra senior officials meetings were also convened on Friday to co-ordinate the response, and officials from across His Majesty’s Government met over the weekend to continuously monitor the impacts and the recovery process. I am pleased to say that Government services and the online services that the Government provide were and remain largely unaffected. My colleagues including the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, the Health Secretary and the Transport Secretary attended briefings with officials throughout, and the Prime Minister was kept informed.

    The majority of the sectors that were impacted have now mostly recovered. The UK transport system—aviation, rail, road and maritime—is running normally. NHS staff worked hard over the course of Friday and the weekend to quickly apply the fixes required, and my colleagues in the Department for Health and Social Care have confirmed that systems are now back online, including for GPs. Their advice is that patients should continue to attend their appointments unless told not to. There may still be some delays, and GPs will need to rebook appointments that could not be made during the IT outage. The public should continue to contact their GPs in the normal way.

    As IT systems are complex, we can expect that minor disruption will continue in some areas while systems continue to recover, but my officials expect those to be resolved in the next couple of days. I would like to thank everyone who has worked so hard to get systems up and running again, and all staff who have worked tirelessly to support individuals impacted by the outage.

    Following this incident, the Cabinet Office will work with the National Cyber Security Centre and other partners across Government to review the lessons learned. The Central Digital and Data Office will work with the NCSC to implement any improvements to the existing response plans to cover both technical resilience features as well as cyber. The Cobra unit will work with Departments to support their processes for establishing how the organisations and sectors they represent manage the impacts of the outage and what lessons have been learnt.

    As soon as the Government were elected, we took immediate steps to begin legislating to protect public services and the third-party services they use. Our cyber-security and resilience Bill, included in the King’s Speech, will strengthen our defences and ensure that more essential digital services than ever before are protected. For example, it will look at expanding the remit of the existing regulation, putting regulators on a stronger footing and increasing reporting requirements to build a better picture in Government of cyber threats. Technology failures can be as disruptive as cyber-attacks, and the move to create the centre for digital government within the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology is aimed at creating a more resilient digital public sector.

    What this incident shows is how dependent the modern world is on complex and interconnected IT systems and how essential preparedness for such events is, including business continuity planning. Notwithstanding the immense frustration and inconvenience that the outage has caused, I am pleased to see that effective contingency plans mitigated the very serious impacts that the outage could have had. I am pleased also that there is to be a comprehensive process to identify the lessons from this episode. I hope that they will lead to improvements that both help prevent similar incidents and further improve our resilience to system outages and the impacts they can have. In that spirit, I commend the statement to the House.

  • Michelle Donelan – 2024 Speech at the Manufacturing Technologies Association Exhibition

    Michelle Donelan – 2024 Speech at the Manufacturing Technologies Association Exhibition

    The speech made by Michelle Donelan, the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, on 16 April 2024.

    Good afternoon.

    It’s a pleasure to be here in Birmingham today.

    Thank you so much for inviting me to speak.

    Today, the UK is one of the world’s leading manufacturing nations.

    A century ago, the name of the game was quantity – the world’s leading manufacturing nations were trying to solve questions of size and scale – churning out more and more, faster and faster.

    Today, the game has reversed, and those questions have largely been solved.

    99% of consumer goods can be manufactured cheaply and at scale.

    The real challenge today – and the one that will define the future of manufacturing – is quality. How do we design and produce the most innovative, intricate technologies like semiconductors for example, in a way that is cost effective?

    This is where the UK’s unique manufacturing history and expertise comes into play.

    Because manufacturing is so much more than what happens on the factory floor…

    Invention… innovation… design… execution… scaling…

    These are the ingredients of high-end manufacturing that the UK has in abundance.

    As the former Universities Minister, I know first hand how our world-class higher education system forms the backbone of advanced manufacturing in the UK. Nearly a decade ago, before I was elected to Parliament, I created the Wiltshire Festival of Engineering. Sponsored by some of the world’s leading manufacturers, including Dyson and Airbus, we were able to inspire thousands of Wiltshire school children into careers in STEM.

    The first debate I ever organised as a newly elected MP was about engineering.

    And my priorities haven’t changed.

    If anything, manufacturing matters even more.

    The past four years have brought with them a relentless barrage of stories about supply chain disruption.

    From the coronavirus pandemic to the war in Ukraine and even a ship stuck in the Suez, the links that hold our economy together seem more fragile than ever.

    And if these stories have taught us anything, it is that the ability to make our own things, on our own terms, is fundamental if we want to face our future head on.

    And we must redouble our efforts to ensure that our strategic goods and technologies, like the machine tools on display this week, do not get into the hands of those who wish to do our nation harm.

    So, as Secretary of State, I have put manufacturing front and centre in my mission to make Britain a science and tech superpower.

    For me, science and technology are not just about labs and lecture theatres.

    Innovation matters most when it is out there in the real world.

    It’s only with the the commercialisation of new ideas, products, processes, and services, that we can create economic growth.

    And it’s only through growing our economy, creating jobs, and driving discoveries that we can make tangible differences to people’s lives.

    British manufacturing businesses are doing just that.

    In fact, materials and manufacturing account for 47% of all business investment in R&D.

    In towns and cities right across the country, you can find some of the most technologically advanced manufacturing in the world.

    In South Wales, we have the world’s first dedicated compound semiconductor cluster.

    In Cambridge, we have the world’s most intensive science and tech cluster, home to Europe’s largest collection of biotechnology businesses – and almost 700 high-tech manufacturing firms. It’s the envy of the world, attracting talent and investment from across the globe.

    Here in the West Midlands, we have a global centre for automotive R&D whose 5G coverage – the highest in the UK – is helping it to lead the way in developing the autonomous vehicles that will transform the way we travel.

    Every pound that goes into British manufacturing is an investment in jobs for British people.

    A vote of confidence in their ability to find the solutions to the immense challenges we face.

    Our £1 billion semiconductor strategy is unlocking new investment in semiconductor manufacturing which will be fundamental for the net zero transition.

    We are boosting life sciences manufacturing with over half a billion pounds, growing an industry that adds almost £20 billion to our economy each year and bolstering our ability to make vaccines that have already saved millions of lives in Britain and beyond.

    Our Wireless Infrastructure Strategy sets out a plan to drive up the adoption of standalone 5G to transform manufacturing, unlocking the potential of technologies like robotics that could make our assembly lines infinitely more efficient, boosting productivity by billions.

    These investments are the decisions of a bold and ambitious government that is prepared to bet big on the ability of British business to build tomorrow’s economy.

    A government that, last year, announced a £4.5 billion plan to back advanced manufacturing industries like aerospace and automotive that employ hundreds of thousands of British people.

    A government that is investing in technologies that don’t just change the things we make, but the way we make them.

    And Britain has reaped the rewards as a result. Between 2010 and 2021, the UK saw the fastest manufacturing productivity growth in the G7.

    But if we want that trend to continue, then we cannot afford to slow down. We must stick to the plan, not go back to square one.

    There is one technology, more than any other, that promises to transform manufacturing in the decades to come: AI.

    AI can help us to make enormous efficiencies in machinery and in supply chains, acting early to prevent days of lost time.

    It can reduce accidents that put workers at risk and test the quality of goods far quicker than any human could.

    It can forecast demand for existing products – and even design new ones that appeal to untapped parts of the market.

    All in all, AI promises nothing less than a revolution for manufacturing.

    And there is no reason why that revolution should not start in the UK.

    Today, we have the third largest AI market in the world – a market that is predicted to grow to over one trillion dollars by the end of the decade.

    Much of that success is thanks to that unique culture of innovation I talked about earlier – a culture where entrepreneurs are unafraid to risk failure in pursuit of success.

    But, I believe, it is also testament to a Prime Minister and government that is prepared to take its own risks.

    Rather than sitting on the fence, playing ‘wait and see,’ we decided to step up and support the technology right from the get-go.

    Over the last decade, we have invested more than £3.5 billion in AI.

    And in the last year, when the extraordinary capabilities of large language models have captured the world’s attention, we kick-started the global conversation on AI safety, hosting the first ever global summit on AI safety. Next month I will travel to Korea to co-host the second summit, and we have the France safety summit planned for early next year.

    But I have always been clear that, while we have one eye on safety, the other must always be on opportunity.

    And that opportunity must be open to everyone.

    Whether you are a small tech start-up looking to scale and succeed in the UK, or a family-owned manufacturing firm looking for ways to stay competitive in a new era, I believe that artificial intelligence has something to offer.

    That is why I set out a pro-safety, pro-innovation approach to regulating AI that will drive growth and create jobs across the country.

    That same mission drove me to set up the AI Opportunity Forum, where we’re working with some of the biggest industry players to encourage the adoption of AI across all businesses, including smaller firms looking to harness the power of artificial intelligence to innovate and grow.

    Some of those firms will benefit from BridgeAI, too, which is supporting British businesses in high-growth sectors like construction and logistics to boost their productivity – and compete on the global stage.

    But no matter how big your business – no matter whether you are designing chips, developing life-saving drugs, or building the next generation of green, electric cars – there is one need that never changes: skills.

    Skills have always been close to my heart. Another one of the drums I’ve been banging for 15 years, a skilled workforce is the foundation stone to everything in our economy.

    If we want British businesses to grow – and if we want that growth to deliver benefits to every British person – then we need people with the skills to succeed in industries of tomorrow.

    To ensure that where you are from does not determine where you can get to.

    So last month, I announced over one billion pounds in support for young people studying PhDs across our five critical technologies – our largest ever investment.

    But you shouldn’t need a PhD to benefit from British science and tech.

    I want to bring its benefits to people from all walks of life.

    That is why we are providing new support for small businesses looking to upskill their employees for the age of AI – and launching a pilot scheme to open apprenticeship pathways into our growing quantum industry.

    I know that there are thousands of apprentices here today. Some of you have even trained at the High Value Manufacturing Catapult my department supports, whose excellent work I have seen for myself at the MTC just down the road in Coventry. I look forward to meeting some of you later this afternoon.

    Because it is talented people like you who hold the key to the kind of sustainable economic growth that will see Britain succeed in the century to come.

    Science and tech can sometimes seem far removed from the reality of our daily lives.

    But behind every one of the breakthroughs we have seen is a person with an idea – and the skills to turn it into a reality.

    The same will be true for the breakthroughs still to come.

    And I have no doubt that some of the people who will be behind them are here in Birmingham this week.

    Some of you will take up jobs with the fast-growing firms who are exhibiting here.

    Others, I’m sure, will use that experience to start innovative businesses of your own.

    But, no matter what path you take, this government will do all it can to support you.

    Because, in your hands, Britain’s manufacturing future is bright.

  • Michelle Donelan – 2024 Speech at Tech UK

    Michelle Donelan – 2024 Speech at Tech UK

    The speech made by Michelle Donelan, the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology in London on 11 March 2024.

    Good morning, everybody, and thank you to techUK for bringing us together today and choosing the theme of growth and public services for our discussion.

    It is no secret that what really motivates and excites me about science and technology and innovation is the truly transformative effect on public services and our economy that new advancements bring.

    My officials will testify that I constantly bang on about public services, and I have made it somewhat my mission to hammer home the real world impact of technology has and can have on people.

    Everything we do in DSIT is shaped around a common goal of improving people’s lives from new lifesaving AI cancer treatments to reinvigorating left behind communities by fuelling their growth with new STEM skills.

    Far from being a kind of side objective of science and technology, I actually believe that transforming public services and driving growth is quite literally the whole point of our science and technology superpower mission.

    That is why I have listened to industry and formed three pillars of what will take us there – skills, scale-up and regulation.

    The right skills to meet the future needs of emerging tech and science businesses…

    The right ecosystem for start-ups to scale-up through homegrown capital investment…

    And common-sense regulation that supports and facilitates innovation…

    These three pillars are critical to turning the incredible Whitehall startup story that is my department, DSIT, into a success story for our public services and our economy.

    So, I am pleased to see this on the agenda…

    …and today, in fact, we have launched our science and technology superpower campaign, showcasing the very best of British business to investors here in the UK.

    But for this session I want to touch on three areas as illustrative examples of how we are really driving growth and improving public services just as we speak.

    And what better way to start than on broadband and connectivity – which form the basic foundation of all digital growth and – particularly when it comes to advanced wireless connectivity like 5G – it truly has the potential for a new, locally delivered, high tech health service as well.

    Every single house and business we connect to gigabit broadband, and every new mobile connection represents a step closer to a true digital economy where opportunity is spread equally.

    That is why we have embarked on one of the largest infrastructure projects since the Victorian era.

    In fact, we have laid enough fibre optic cable to go around the Earth five times over.

    And by the time we have connected the remaining homes, we’ll have laid enough cable to go nearly halfway to the Moon.

    That’s been achieved in the space of just a single Parliament.

    For communities across the country, that means we have gone from just 6% coverage in 2019 to over 81% coverage today.

    Thanks to a unique public-private partnership that this government decided to pioneer, [political content removed] our plan we’re now rolling out Gigabit broadband faster than anywhere else in the EU.

    With the government working hand-in-hand with business right now we connect a premises to gigabit broadband every 13 seconds.

    And independent research estimates that a gigabit connection adds an extra £217 per person, per year to the UK economy.

    Let’s think about that for a moment – every 13 seconds, this government, working with industry, is improving another person’s economic output by £217 – and probably more in the same household.

    Since I started speaking, in fact, today, that’s about 50 new premises and several times that number in terms of people with access to connections which are adding hundreds of pounds more to our economy each year.

    That means more money into our economy and more money into public services.

    But it goes well beyond economics.

    To me that is 50 young families with access to education and employment opportunities that they didn’t have before.

    It’s 50 businesses with access to new markets for their products and services.

    It’s 50 elderly people able to keep in touch with their loved ones and using better healthcare technology in their home.

    That is what I mean when I say that everything we do must be geared toward real, tangible outcomes for real people.

    I saw that when I visited Northumberland just the other week, celebrating the millionth home connected by the government funded-rollout of Gigabit broadband, I saw how it is changing lives for people young and old – especially outside our cities, in our rural communities.

    And we have a bold ambition – as set out in our Wireless Infrastructure Strategy- for all populated areas to have access to higher quality standalone 5G connectivity by the end of the decade.

    But this advanced wireless technology is so much more than connecting smart phones – it offers a very high grade of connectivity that can unleash growth and productivity in sectors across the economy, from manufacturing, to agritech, to the creative industries.

    Our £40 million 5G Innovations Regions programme is about realising the vast potential that exists in sectors across the economy and in every corner of the United Kingdom.

    And we won’t stop at 5G. Our work is well underway to prepare for the next generation of wireless technologies that will emerge in the next decade: and that is, of course, 6G.

    The next thing I want to discuss today really doesn’t get enough attention in my opinion – yet is one of the great untapped resources that we have right at our fingertips.

    When it comes to delivering public services, every developed country faces the same fundamental challenge – we have to deliver more services… For more people… Using fewer resources.  And what is that thing that I’m alluding to? It is, of course, data.

    So, best public services in the 21st Century will be defined by their ability to be delivered in an efficient and effective way.

    In my view, data will be absolutely critical to this.

    I said in my recent scaleup speech the other month that the public sector and other organisations are sitting on mountains of incredibly useful data that could be used more to improve public services while of course protecting privacy.

    I am making it my mission to help unlock that hidden potential and ensure that the UK catches up with other countries who are already reaping the rewards of better data utilisation.

    In last week’s Budget, the Chancellor confirmed two new pilots to improve data access whilst protecting data protection and security. The pilots will help generate new AI services to support teaching and promote better data access and services in the adult social care sector.

    The Data Bill that I am currently steering through Parliament with my wonderful team of ministers is just one step in the making of this a reality – on its own it will add £10 billion to our economy and most crucially – we designed it so that the greatest benefit would be felt by small businesses across our country.

    Cashing in on a Brexit opportunity that only we were prepared to take, and now those rewards are going to be felt by the next generation of founders and business owners in local communities.

    But as I said earlier this year, data-driven public services are not just a nice to have, they are an absolute necessity if we are going to be able to deliver more for the public at better value for money.

    The NHS has already used innovative data analysis to target the HPV vaccine at younger patients, where its benefits will be felt most strongly. When used in this way, the vaccine has reduced incidents of cervical cancer by up to 87%, which I personally think is absolutely remarkable.

    All parts of the public sector can play a part here in finding ways to use anonymised local and national data to target public services more effectively.

    I take an unapologetically pro-business, pro-common-sense approach when it comes to people’s lives and making sure technology delivers for them.

    That approach is indispensable for the final example I want to talk about today, and that is artificial intelligence – the technology that, perhaps more than any other, will define the decade to come.

    AI is where we see technology’s potential for the public sector go into overdrive. Whether in our health service or our transport systems, there is quite literally no limit to what AI could achieve.

    It really is one of those areas that does keep me up at night, but in a good way.

    Today, because of the bold and unique approach the UK has taken on AI since the creation of my department, our AI sector is widely regarded as the third largest in the world, behind only the US and China.

    And, as the technology evolves even faster, and the world’s leading companies choose to locate themselves in London, we can expect it to go from strength of strength.

    We are leading the way with AI safety so that we can grip the risks to seize the opportunities. Having convened the world last year at Bletchley Park and secured landmark agreements including access to pre and post deployment testing of models. And we are now home to the world’s very first AI Institute which is already functioning and has begun testing models.

    Our AI market is predicted to grow to over one trillion dollars by 2035 – now to put that into context, that is the same size as our entire tech sector put together today. The economic possibilities for the UK are genuinely staggering.

    But all this is quite meaningless unless behind those stats, they translate into tangible benefits small businesses and communities.

    In the same way as the internet boom has enriched the lives of every single person across the country, so too can AI.

    Imagine for a minute a transport network where the network is smart enough to work around passengers rather than the passengers working around the network.

    Or imagine a fully scaled, smart electricity grid that smashes the UK’s net zero targets on time because we only generate what we actually use.

    And the one that really means something to many of you here today I believe, is the power of what it could do for our NHS. Imagine an NHS where AI is detecting cancer earlier than we ever thought possible, or where new drugs are available to cure illnesses that we have tried and failed to do for centuries.

    Through the AI in Health and Care Award, we have invested £123 million to test and evaluate artificial intelligence technologies in crucial areas that cause the most harm to health and the economy.

    For instance, technology being used in stroke care and is significantly increasing the speed at which patients are diagnosed and treated, which in turn is improving the rates of independent living following a stroke. In fact, we have deployed AI technology into 95% of stroke units in England. That’s not what could happen, that is what is happening.

    Like data, it can help medical professionals across the country in more everyday ways, too – saving them time, saving them money and helping them to focus their efforts where it really makes a difference.

    An AI-enabled NHS could give doctors an AI co-pilot working for them 24/7 – allowing them to spend more time with their patients and improving overall patient care.

    Curing cruel diseases like cancer and dementia are genuinely now on the cards with advancements in AI around the corner, which is great news but should not mean we just sit and wait and expect it to happen.

    Because what actually really excites me today in the here and now is how AI is making us far better at predicting and preventing disease – and ultimately that is what the goal of the NHS should one day be – not to treat existing disease, but to prevent it altogether.

    But however exciting this all is, I want to make a very important point today – and that is that none of these opportunities that I have spoken about today are inevitable. It, of course, requires a government that sees the potential of AI, is prepared to take the necessary steps to make sure the UK is leading the way in the safe development and deployment of AI, and is supporting our businesses and our public services to adopt AI.

    If we go down the route of stifling innovation and closing the door to AI technologies, we have no hope of achieving the kind of public sector adoption that is needed to make these goals a reality.

    The Budget last week was the latest affirmation of our commitment here, from a new £7.4 million upskilling fund pilot that will help SMEs develop AI skills of the future… to the announcement that we will invest in AI Document Processing and a new pilot for using AI in speeding up planning processes.

    Our wider agile, fast-paced, but also safety-first approach has been welcomed across the board and I know techUK have been very supportive of our process and the White Paper that we recently responded to.

    Now if you let me, I could of course go into the details of how our work on quantum is literally pushing the boundaries of a transformational field…

    Or how the UK compound semiconductor design power is growing through extraordinary research here on our shores…

    Or how the UK’s world-leading cyber security expertise is now sought after across the globe…

    But I am conscious of the fact that I’m probably already running over time, so I want to leave you with one final thought.

    Although we in Westminster can often get wrapped up in the theory and the policy – we have to remember how real the benefits of these technologies are to the British people.

    If you came in for your radiotherapy treatment a year or two ago, it might have taken a doctor three whole hours just to prepare you safely for the procedure.

    That is three hours per patient, and a long queue of patients each in desperate need.

    Today, right now, that same procedure is being done in the amount of time I have stood up here speaking, thanks to an amazing AI tool.

    These are incredible leaps that are not just changing lives but saving them too. I want us to continue building a public service system that can deliver for the British people today and well into the future.

    Thank you.

  • Andrew Griffith – 2024 Speech at LEAP ’24

    Andrew Griffith – 2024 Speech at LEAP ’24

    The speech made by Andrew Griffith, the Science Minister, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on 4 March 2024.

    Good afternoon.  It’s a pleasure to be here.

    I must start by thanking the patron of this conference and our gracious host, His Excellency Minister AlSwaha, and all of the teams behind this fantastic event.

    This is my second visit to the dynamic City of Riyadh in a few months and it is good to be back.

    The immense science and innovation ambition of the Kingdom in its Vision 2030 is clear and commendable.

    In its four priorities – health and wellbeing, sustainability, energy and economies of the future – Saudi Arabia has shown that it is ready to harness the power of research to tackle some of the greatest shared challenges of our time.

    Projects like NEOM which seeks to harness the power of AI and net zero technologies to establish the most advanced human habitat on Earth  have the potential to drive forward innovation at a scale and pace almost without precedent in human history.

    I am here because I believe that Britain has a vital role to play in that story.

    With four of the world’s top ten universities, we have one of the most formidable research and innovation bases on the planet.

    And according to the World Intellectual Property Organisation, the UK is one of the most innovative economies.

    Like Saudi Arabia, we too, are unapologetically ambitious in capitalising on our strengths to grow our economy and improve lives for people in Britain and around the world.

    Our Science and Tech Framework sets out our ambition to become a science and technology superpower by 2030, with plans to lead in transformative technologies such as artificial intelligence, quantum, and synthetic biology.

    But, even though we are competitive, we are clear that no country can become a science and tech superpower in isolation.

    Just as the history is of humankind becoming more prosperous, living longer, and building great civilisations through free trade, global innovation is not a zero-sum game.

    And so today, my message is this:

    With our shared strengths and our levels of ambition, the UK and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia can form a formidable research and innovation partnership for the future.

    That’s why I’m delighted to have today signed a Memorandum of Understanding between our two governments.

    This agreement will encourage our worldQ-leading researchers to form productive partnerships in the years to come.

    And I lay down the challenge to British Universities and institutes: come now and seek opportunities to collaborate in the innovative and fast growing Saudi economy.

    Our two countries’ collaborations in this space are young, but we already have over 50 formalised partnerships.

    Over the last decade, they have delivered everything from joint centres of excellence, to research collaborations and visiting researcher programmes.

    Based on scientific publications, I am proud that Britain is already the Kingdom’s third largest collaborator in research and innovation.

    Actions matter, not just words, and that is why this May, I and a very senior delegation of UK businesses and ministers will return to Saudi Arabia in full force to launch our GREAT Futures Campaign – another chance to turbo-charge our innovation agenda.

    Honoured attendees, it is hard to think of a single challenge we face which won’t require innovation.

    The ‘to do’ list for global research and innovation has never run to so many lines.

    The horrifying consequences of anti-microbial resistance or future zoonotic disease pandemics.

    Protecting societies from extremist ideologies and keeping our children safe online.

    The growing challenges of obesity, cancer and dementia – whilst not neglecting the hunger and disease still faced by too many in the developing world.

    And that’s before we contemplate the need for new low carbon energy systems, creative ways to support mass urbanisation or urgent action to protect nature on our congested and fragile planet.

    Global challenges require a global response.

    And each of us in our national governments have a critical role to play.

    From revolutionary stem cell treatment for reversing sight loss to the first transatlantic flight run on 100% sustainable aviation fuel, the UK shows how publicly-funded research working with private capital and business can help transform the world for the better.

    Perhaps there is no better example than the COVID-19 vaccine, which went on to save an estimated 6 million lives and freed billions more across the globe from lockdown.

    The success of the vaccine only happened as the result of the excellence of Britain’s Universities combined with the innovation of our life sciences companies.

    Saudi Arabia is on a similar path.

    Government-led investment – combined with reforms designed to unleash innovation, like the establishment of the Research, Development and Innovation authority – is already delivering impressive results from public health to energy and the environment.

    NEOM and KAUST are employing digital twinning technology to set up the world’s largest coral reef restoration project.

    And like the UK’s BioBank, the Saudi Human Genome project, is capturing the genetic blueprint of Saudi society to tackle disease with personalised medicine.

    Our commitment is strong and unwavering.

    Last month saw UK annual investment in research and development reach its highest ever level.

    The UK will spend £20 billion across the coming financial year.

    As a country That’s one fifth of all government capital expenditure.

    And it adds up to more than £100 billion between now and 2030.

    Now, we are laser-focused on building an innovation ecosystem where it is simple and rewarding to take that world-leading research, and use it to start and scale a successful business in Britain.

    This is not just happening in world-renowned powerhouses like Oxford, Cambridge and London, but in every corner of the country.

    Take Stevenage – I don’t imagine many of you have heard about this town that sits squarely in the middle of England.

    Yet the Bioscience Catalyst science park in Stevenage is the single largest cluster of cell and gene therapy companies in Europe.

    This is no coincidence. Cutting-edge companies from around the world have chosen the UK to start-up and scale-up precisely because of those public-private partnerships I have been talking about.

    From small satellite manufacturing in Glasgow to semiconductors in South Wales, our thriving R&D ecosystem means that there are stories like this up and down the UK.

    In fact, my team have developed a new Cluster Mapping Tool to make it easier for investors, entrepreneurs and government to identify these hot spots of innovation.

    Of course, success will never be exclusively about raw investment.

    We in government also have a responsibility to ensure that regulators can provide innovative businesses with the clarity and certainty that they need to get their products and services to market  quickly.

    I have run businesses myself, and I know how frustrating it can be to have a brilliant idea you are unable to execute, because clunky rules, risk averse regulators or out-of-date laws don’t allow for it.

    Good regulation should encourage innovation, not stifle it, even as we refuse to compromise on safety.

    Even in fast moving technologies, the right balance of regulation can help provide certainty to invest.

    A good example is the UK’s approach to the safety of Frontier AI and last years summit at Bletchley Park.

    It is why we have made delivering an ambitious regulatory reform agenda a top priority in the UK, and a key pillar in our science and tech framework.

    To conclude my remarks:

    We all in this room have an incredible opportunity.

    It’s an exciting time in innovation and an exciting moment to be an innovator.

    That’s true individually but it is also true at the whole economy scale where countries like the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United Kingdom seek to be innovator economies; to grow and to improve the lives of their citizens and make a wider contribution.

    But at a time of shared global challenges, none of us can do it alone.

    We in government must work together – such as in the agreement the UK has today signed with Saudi Arabia – and by doing so we can support bigger, better, bolder science than we could ever do alone – and take on and solve the challenges that will define the future.

    Thank you.

  • Oliver Dowden – 2024 Speech on AI for Public Good

    Oliver Dowden – 2024 Speech on AI for Public Good

    The speech made by Oliver Dowden, the Deputy Prime Minister, at Imperial College on London on 29 February 2024.

    INTRODUCTION

    Ladies and gentlemen…

    The story of technological advancement is one of constant evolution…

    … punctuated by game-changing innovations.

    In my lifetime, the personal computer, the internet, the smart phone, have all made the tech world – and our interaction with it – unrecognisable.

    And they have all – in turn – transformed the way that citizens interact with government, and with public services.

    I believe another such game-changer has arrived…

    … in the form of transformative AI models – including Large Language Models – that enable computers and humans to interact in totally new ways.

    The last fourteen years has been a period of incremental tech improvements.

    The digital interfaces we use are largely recognisable.

    Yes – we have seized new opportunities…

    … such as rolling out gov.uk…

    … and making our services “digital by default”.

    But many of the systems that we use have not kept up with advances…

    … indeed some of them, I’m afraid to say, have not moved on at all.

    Modern AI has the potential to fundamentally change the way that public services operate within just a few short years.

    Indeed, if we are still working off the same systems – and in the same way – in another 14 years… or even frankly another two or three…

    …then we will have failed to embrace the opportunity that now lies before us.

    OPPORTUNITY

    And so, just as the UK is leading the world in the field of AI safety…

    … the Prime Minister has asked me to ensure we are leading the world in the adoption of AI across our public sector.

    The opportunity here is hard to put a value on…

    … although I notice the IPPR have estimated that there is the potential to save £24 billion each year from roll-out of these new technologies.

    So for me it’s only by the rapid adoption of AI that we will drive the savings needed to put us on a sustainable path to a smaller state and better delivery of services.

    The pace of change is such that new opportunities are being uncovered literally on a daily basis, and a new world is opening out before us…

    AI is potentially – and I don’t say this lightly – a ‘silver bullet’…

    … it dangles before us the prospect of increased productivity, vast efficiency savings, and improved services.

    We are already beginning to see glimpses of what these tools have to offer…

    … and so I’d like to paint a brief picture of what the world might look like if we get this right:

    VISION OF SUCCESS

    In healthcare – AI diagnostic tools could transform primary care…

    …with appointments transcribed in real time by ambient AI, then instantly producing prescriptions and referrals…

    …  scans read by AI with far greater accuracy …

    … and medicines tailored to individuals based on their genetics – again using AI.

    In education – … AI could help eliminate excessive paperwork …

    …freeing-up teacher time to focus on what they do best…

    …AI assistants could help teachers to adapt lessons to the specific needs of each pupil…

    … and AI-augmented reality can take interactive learning to another level.

    In crime prevention – AI can direct police to where they are most needed…

    … spot patterns of criminality to discover culprits quicker than ever…

    …and help keep the streets safer for everyone.

    And in all kinds of public sector casework – from immigration processing to benefit claims – AI can be used to summarise complex information…

    … enabling expert case-workers to spend more time actually making decisions.

    I could go on nearly forever to cover all areas of public administration…

    … because there are very few areas of the public sector that don’t have the potential to be enhanced by these tools.

    HOW DO WE GET THERE?

    The question, though, is how do we get there?

    I believe the measures we are bringing forward put in the structures, resources, and mindset…

    … to put the UK on the fastest path to successful adoption of public sector AI.

    Taking advantage of our unique strengths…

    … to revolutionise public services for everyone in the months and years ahead.

    Last year, I established a small team of data scientists, engineers and machine learning experts at the heart of Government – the Incubator for AI – or ‘i.AI’ – under the energetic leadership of Dr Laura Gilbert.

    The idea of these experts was to work with departments to target the biggest opportunities to both save money and deliver better public services.

    The quality of applicants for this program has been phenomenal.

    It is incredibly exciting to see such talented technical people choosing to enter public service…

    … bringing in new ideas to help change the way government delivers services.

    In a few short months this team of just 30 individuals have instigated 10 pilot programs, including…

    • AI to flag fraud and error in pharmacies – that costs the taxpayer £1 billion every single year.
    • A tool that will read and summarise responses to Government consultations, this says something about the scale of Government consultations, but this could save up to £80 million a year in central government alone…
    • And AI algorithms to help move asylum claimants out of hotels more efficiently… helping to save further millions.

    And I can also announce our intention to roll out a new gov.uk chatbot that will provide an interactive interface for people to better navigate Government information and services.

    But this is clearly just the very start…

    …I want to ensure that – where these pilots have proof of concept – we can scale them up as fast as possible…

    i.AI scale-up

    …And so, I can announce today that we will more than double the size of i.AI – to 70 people – recruiting the very best of British talent to drive this work across the public sector.

    This unprecedented influx of cutting-edge expertise into Government will enable us to design, build and – crucially – implement AI swiftly and at scale…

    Of course, there is still a huge role for the private sector – and I welcome the collaboration that we have with so many of the businesses in this room today.

    Nothing will match the strength and depth of the private sector AI innovation that is happening right now – and as all of you know so much of it here in the UK.

    But I believe that by embedding experts at the heart of Government…

    … and upskilling public servants to utilise these tools…

    …we will set ourselves up to deliver the benefits to citizens as quickly – and as efficiently – as possible.

    HORIZONTALS

    The other reason it is so important to have this team at the centre of Government is to ensure that – as AI rolls-out across the public sector – we adhere to the following principles:

    … sharing best practice…

    …deploying individual models to multiple use-cases…

    … finding economies of scale..

    … and, crucially, ensuring interoperability.

    Although I don’t claim for the moment to have the expertise needed to actually build AI models…

    … I can see that – like so many great inventions – there is something beautifully simple about what they are actually doing.

    Indeed, when you boil it down, I think there are four ways AI can be applied to much of public sector activity…

    … spotting patterns of fraud and error;

    … helping the public to navigate services;

    … managing casework;

    … and automating internal processes.

    And so the i.AI team have been looking across these applications with those principles in mind…

    … And I have agreed with the Treasury that we will make all funding for Government AI projects contingent on departments collaborating with i.AI.

    Never again should we be investing money in IT systems without considering how to make them as efficient and interoperable as possible…

    … or without robustly challenging both the timelines and the costs to deliver better value.

    I want to ensure that where we develop a tool for one department – we are considering where else it could be deployed.

    MINISTERIAL FORUM

    And do to facilitate this discussion…

    …to ensure departments are fully integrated into this cross-government effort…

    … we need a regular dialogue between all those involved across government.

    And so I am convening a meeting of the National Science and Technology Council on AI for public sector good …

    … alongside my Co-Chair, Michelle Donelan – our fantastic Secretary of State for Science and Technology.

    Every department has now designated a specific minister to be responsible for AI in their area…

    … and I have asked for them to meet on a regular basis.

    In the Cabinet Office, this work will be led by Minister Burghart…

    … and I want to thank him for the passion, purpose and drive that he has brought to the programme so far, as is often the case when you run a department you get to stand up and make the announcements, but actually Minister Burghart who has actually done the work to bring Government together to do this.

    WIDER PUBLIC SECTOR JOIN-UP

    Of course, central Government can only take this work so far…

    To truly maximise the benefits on offer we need to work with bodies and agencies right across the public sector.

    And so I am delighted to announce today that i.AI will sign a ‘Collaboration Charter’ with NHS England.

    This first-of-a-kind initiative will provide a framework for our experts in the incubator to support the NHS to identify and deploy AI solutions that improve services for patients.

    And I would urge other public sector bodies to consider doing exactly the same thing, I think it can bring enormous benefits

    RESOURCING

    There is no shortage in the Government’s ambition to use AI for public good.

    We have put the expertise and the structures in place…

    … and we are making progress on our early pilot projects…

    …but we also appreciate the investment that will be needed to make good on our ambition to see the UK leading the pack.

    And crucially, investment will be required both to improve services and cut costs…

    But also to pave the way for a leaner public sector.

    MITIGATING RISK

    Through all of this, we are conscious of the need to guard against the risks that have rightly been flagged.

    And, while every effort will be made to eliminate bias, misinformation, and hallucinations…

    … ultimately, we are very clear about the need for human oversight…

    … and a clear distinction between AI suggestions and support on the one hand…

    …and human decision making on the other.

    CONCLUSION

    I believe we can take the worst things about public services…

    …whether that’s the time-wasting, form-filling, pencil-pushing, computer-says-no, the mind-numbing-ness of it…

    … and the kinds of things that make us want to tear our hair out…

    We can take those things and we can turn them around with the help of AI.

    This is not about replacing real people with robots…

    …it is about removing spirit-sapping, time-wasting admin and bureaucracy…

    …freeing public servants to do the important work that they do best…

    … and saving taxpayers billions of pounds in the process.

    We’ve got the political will. We’ve got the world-class civil service. We have the big data. We have the tech companies.

    We are ready.

    So let’s not wait.

    Let’s lead the way…

    …and join me in the AI revolution today.

  • Oliver Dowden – 2024 Statement on Emirates Telecommunications Group Company PJSC

    Oliver Dowden – 2024 Statement on Emirates Telecommunications Group Company PJSC

    The statement made by Oliver Dowden, the Deputy Prime Minister, on 26 January 2024.

    The UK Government has approved the Strategic Relationship Agreement between Vodafone and e&. Using the National Security & Investment Act it has put in place proportionate measures to address any potential national security concerns.

    The UK is rightly a magnet for global investment and, in this spirit, the Act is entirely country-agnostic.

    Where investment might impact the UK’s national security – for example through the acquisition of certain technologies or infrastructure – we will work with investment partners to minimise any risk. As part of our Critical National Infrastructure, telecoms is one such sector. Vodafone is also a particularly important company for the UK Government given its critical functions, including as a key partner in HMG’s Cyber Security Strategy.

  • Oliver Dowden – 2023 Speech on AI in Government

    Oliver Dowden – 2023 Speech on AI in Government

    The speech made by Oliver Dowden, the Deputy Prime Minister, on 20 December 2023.

    It’s great to be here, opening this sell-out event, and that was even before I was confirmed as a speaker.

    It is one of the biggest hands-on technical upskilling events the government has ever hosted.

    A historic event – and this is a historic moment in human history.

    Because artificial intelligence is changing everything – the way we live and the way we work.

    A big focus of the government has been on making sure those technologies are safe.

    Many of you were involved in delivering the world’s first ever AI Safety Summit, which took place at Bletchley Park earlier this month.

    But as well as the huge risks AI poses, there are also enormous opportunities – particularly for us in the public sector to transform productivity.

    As the Chancellor said at the weekend, some public servants waste a whole working day each week on admin.

    I’ve worked in government for many years and I know the frustrations.

    You just want to get on with your work – but it isn’t that easy.

    Stifled by systems.

    Bogged down by bureaucracy.

    Peed off by processes that haven’t changed in decades.

    No wonder, as Jim Hacker says in Yes Minister, “it takes time [for the civil service] to do things quickly” and “it’s more expensive to do things cheaply”.

    Well, all that can change – with the help of AI.

    The potential productivity benefits from applying these technologies to routine tasks across the public sector are estimated to be worth billions.

    The UK is already leading the way: ranked third in the Government AI Readiness Index and attracting £18 billion of private investment since 2016.

    Traditionally, though, the public sector has not been the fastest adopter.

    But with AI it doesn’t have to be that way.

    We have the big data.

    We have the large workforce.

    We have the finest minds and the keenest beans and a government which is one hundred per cent behind this, driven by our Prime Minister.

    So many sectors are embracing the opportunities and the benefits are being felt across society.

    90 per cent of stroke units are now using cutting-edge AI tools.

    Thousands of teachers have signed up to a pilot AI-powered lesson planner and quiz builder.

    We’re bringing that spirit to Whitehall.

    We’ve got civil servants upskilling through this One Big Thing initiative.

    Earlier this month I announced we were trialling AI red boxes to reduce paperwork. An idea that sprung from an Evidence House hackathon which many of you in this room took part in.

    And today I can unveil plans for a new, turbo-charged, ‘Incubator for AI’ team.

    Job adverts go live today – on our new website – ai.gov.uk – to boost this team to an initial 30 people technical AI experts, programme managers, product managers and engagement specialists all working together to rapidly enhance the adoption of AI through a centre of excellence.

    One of their first tasks will be to assess which Government systems have data curated in the right way to take advantage of AI and which systems need updating before that full potential can be harnessed.

    I think of the potential of this work, from correspondence to call handling, from health care to welfare.

    I don’t mean replacing real people with robots, or adding to the frustrations of dealing with government.

    I mean removing the things that annoy people most in their dealings with officialdom – namely the time it takes to do things quickly.

    Imagine that transformation from computer says no, to computer says yes.

    And we can all be part of that – we all deal with digital and data in some way or another.

    So let us, the civil service, be the early adopters.

    Let us be the trailblazers.

    Let Whitehall show the country – and the world – how it’s done.

    The revolution has just begun.

    Thank you.

  • Oliver Dowden – 2023 Speech on Cyber Operations

    Oliver Dowden – 2023 Speech on Cyber Operations

    The speech made by Oliver Dowden, the Deputy Prime Minister, on 7 December 2023.

    Of all the risks that this country faces… there are none that are evolving more rapidly than those in the cyber domain.

    More actors…

    Have more sophisticated tools…

    To target more people…

    Than ever.

    Protecting the public from cyber attack is a matter of the utmost importance.

    Let’s be clear what’s being targeted here.

    The critical services that government delivers:

    Our public finances…

    Our roads and railways…

    Our schools…

    Our health service…

    Our armed forces…

    Even the heart of central government itself.

    Of all the vaults that cyber criminals are desperate to crack into…

    … this one contains some of the greatest rewards.

    That’s why we see so many attempts to breach our digital defences.

    Last year, 40 per cent of the attacks addressed by the National Cyber Security Centre were against the public sector.

    In a world where the new frontline is online…

    …the people in this room are manning the barricades to keep us safe and secure…

    … and for that I want to say thank you.

    Despite the challenges we face, our cyber defences are stronger than ever.

    Since it was published two years ago, the Government Cyber Security Strategy has been a game-changer.

    Work is well underway to ensure that government’s most critical functions are significantly hardened to cyber attack.

    And we have established ambitious targets that will see all government organisations made resilient to known vulnerabilities and common attack methods.

    Through GovAssure – which I launched in April – we have transformed the oversight of governmental cybersecurity…

    And the new ‘Government Cyber Coordination Centre’ – better known as ‘GC3’ is bringing together a community of cyber defenders from across government…

    …sharing best practice…

    … and showing that a “whole of government approach” is not a slogan, it’s a reality.

    Working together with the National Cyber Advisory Board… (which I Chair)…

    …and of course the National Cyber Security Centre.

    All of you play a crucial role in iterating the strategy…

    … and ensuring it is implemented right across Government.

    Your work never stops… because the risk of attack never stops.

    The threats we face are increasing and the nature of those threats is evolving.

    Technologies are developing at an exponential rate…

    …and have lowered the bar for hostile actors – states and criminals.

    The biggest cyber threats are not just to our public services but the democratic means by which we deliver them.

    Some states are likely to be harnessing significantly more sophisticated technology to sow confusion and dissension and chaos in our society.

    Malicious actors continue to target high profile people within the political process.

    This is not an abstract possibility. We have already seen it…

    In Ukraine – with deep-fakes of President Zelensky…

    In the US – where Iranian hackers have been indicted for undermining voter confidence and sowing discord…

    And here in the UK – with our Electoral Commission targeted by a complex cyber attack.

    As I warned at CYBERUK in Belfast in April…

    …the greatest risks still emanate from the “usual suspects”…

    …China, Iran, North Korea, and Russia.

    But they are increasingly using ‘Wagner-style’ sub-state hackers to do their dirty work.

    Today in concert with our Five Eyes and Euro-Atlantic partners….

    I can tell you that a unit within the Russian Federal Security Service, known as Centre 18, has been behind sustained hostile cyber operations…

    …aimed at interfering in parts of the UK’s democratic processes…

    This has included targeting members of parliament…

    …Civil servants, think tanks, journalists, and NGOs…

    …through a group commonly known as Star Blizzard.

    This group, operated by FSB officers, has also selectively leaked and amplified information designed to undermined trust in politics, both in the UK and in like minded states.

    A senior representative of the Russian government has been summoned to the Foreign Office this morning and appropriate sanctions have been levelled.

    Our political processes and institutions will continue to endure in spite of these attacks.

    But they serve to prove that the cyber threat posed by the Russian Intelligence Services is real and serious.

    It is a stark reminder that…

    as we in government develop our capabilities…

    …so do our adversaries, and those who do their bidding.

    We are in a cyberspace race…

    …them – to develop the tools to do us harm…

    …us – to build the defences needed to protect against their attacks.

    Next year, 3 billion people in 40 countries will head to the polls …

    … and it is a fact that hostile state actors will continue to seek to undermine these collective expressions of democracy…

    …because they fear the freedoms they represent.

    We must – all of us – do all we can to resist.

    There are two main ways in which we can get ahead:

    Strengthening our cyber security systems…

    …and improving our skills.

    First, our systems.

    It wasn’t that long ago that the government was still using fax machines.

    I worked for the administration that helped to bring Whitehall into the digital age…

    …and made our services “digital by default”.

    The challenge is to make those digital systems “secure by design”…and to embed effective cyber security practices into our digital delivery.

    That’s why I am announcing today that we will make security everyone’s responsibility…

    …and make “secure by design” mandatory for central government organisations.

    This approach is already inspiring our partners around the world…

    …and, like our earlier digital revolution, is likely to be emulated around the world.

    Your role in embedding this approach at home will be crucial.

    Then there is the question of skills.

    In this room we have a wealth of deep technical expertise…

    …and we have the ability to share and collaborate with our international partners.

    But we need the experts of the future to be coming up, through that pipeline, to meet the challenges of the future.

    In the UK, as around the world, the shortage of cyber skills affects both the public and private sectors.

    It is estimated that we have a shortfall of around 14,000 professionals….

    …and that shortfall is particularly stark in the public sector.

    As one of the largest employers of cyber security experts, the government’s actions can make a real difference to the makeup of the national profession.

    So we have launched apprenticeship and fast stream programmes focused specifically on finding and developing  cyber talent.

    This is the new frontline.

    And we must form a united front…

    …government, business, academia, individuals, all coming together to pre-empt and ward off these risks.

    Not just “whole of government” – but “whole of society”.

    It is what we have that our adversaries and their agents lack: unity.

    And there are huge opportunities in that…

    …particularly for our entrepreneurs and innovators.

    They will develop the defensive technologies that will protect not just this country… but the world.

    Britain has the opportunity to lead … in tech, in AI and in cyber…

    …because the best place in the world to do business must also be the safest place in the world to do business…

    …and together we can make that a reality.

    Thank you.

  • Michelle Donelan – 2023 Speech to the FOSI Annual Conference

    Michelle Donelan – 2023 Speech to the FOSI Annual Conference

    The speech made by Michelle Donelan, the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation, and Technology, on 14 November 2023.

    Hello and thank you for having me here today, it is a pleasure to be in Washington.

    Now from the outset I must confess I have brought a numerous amount of British bugs with me, and so if I end up coughing, spluttering, drying up, please forgive me and bear with me, but I will do my very best throughout the speech.

    And there is a reason that my first speech on the subject of online safety, since the UK’s world leading Online Safety Act passed is taking place here in the United States. Because the UK and the USA obviously share a special relationship that is fundamentally about our values.

    The Online Safety Act – which I want to talk about for a bit today – is about reaffirming our longstanding values and principles and extending them to the online world. Empowering adults, protecting free expression, standing up for the rule of law, and most importantly, protecting our children.

    These are the values that Britain has pioneered for centuries, and they are also the values that made the extraordinary story of the United States possible.

    In the most recent chapter of that story, the transformational power of the internet has created the online world that is increasingly, seamlessly intertwined with the real world. But the values that made our free, safe, liberal societies possible have not been reflected online – especially when it comes to social media.

    The guardrails, customs and rules that we have taken for granted offline have, in the last two decades, become noticeable in their absence online. FOSI have been an important part of the conversation to identify this problem, and I want to extend my thanks to you for all the tireless work that you’ve done on this incredibly important agenda.

    And thanks to the work of campaigners here and in the UK, lawmakers from Washington to Westminster have taken the issue of online safety increasingly seriously, especially when it comes to the protection of our children.

    And today I want to share with you how we rose to the challenge of online safety in the UK – what we did, how we did it, and I guess why we did it as well.

    I think the why of that equation is the best place to start, given FOSI’s role in helping to answer that question over the years. Now, my department was created back in February to seize the opportunities of our digital age. Not just the opportunities that are in front of our generation now, but the opportunities that will potentially shape the futures of our children and our grandchildren.

    My 6-month-old son will grow up thinking nothing of his ability to communicate with people thousands of miles away and, I hope, he’s going to go on and do much more. Sharing research with his school friends potentially, learning new languages about countries that he might not have even visited, and gaining new skills that will enable him to fully take advantage of his talents when he grows up. Of course, if you ask my husband, he will tell you he hopes that those talents will lead him to the Premier League football.

    But we cannot afford to ignore the dangers that our children increasingly face online and I do think it is a sobering fact that children nowadays are just a few clicks away from entering adulthood, whether that’s opening a laptop or picking up an iPad.

    And despite the voluntary efforts of companies and the incredible work of campaigners, the stats tell us unequivocally that voluntary efforts are simply not enough.

    Did you know that the average age that a child sees pornography is 13? When I first heard that, it really, really struck me as something that needs to be dealt with. And a staggering 81% of 12–15-year-olds have reported coming across inappropriate content when surfing the web, including sites promoting suicide and self-harm.

    Now, regardless of ideology or political party, I don’t think anyone can look at what’s happening to our children and suggest that a hands-off approach that has dominated so far is working.I believe that we have a responsibility and in fact a duty to act when the most vulnerable in our society are under an increasing threat – especially our children.

    So, when I stood in the House of Commons during the Bill’s passage, I said enough is enough – and I meant it.

    Now, I defy any person who says it cannot or should not be done – as adults it is our fundamental duty to protect children and be that shield for them against those who wish to do them harm. And that is why in the UK, I have been on somewhat of a mission to shield our children through the Online Safety Act.

    And we started with the obvious – applying the basic common-sense principles of what is illegal offline, should actually be illegal online. Quite simply if it is illegal in the streets – it should be illegal in the tweets.

    No longer will tech companies be able to run Wild West platforms where they can turn a blind eye to things like terrorism and child abuse. The days of platforms filled with underage users, when even adverts are tailored to those underage users, are now over.

    If you host content only suitable for adults, then you must use highly effective age assurance tools to prevent children from getting access.

    We can and we will prevent children from seeing content that they can never unsee – pornography, self harm, serious violence, eating disorder material – no child in Britain will have to grow up being exposed to that in the future and I think that that is quite remarkable. Because when we consider the impact that that content is having on our children, it is quite frankly horrific.

    Of course, we know that most websites and all the major social media platforms already have some policies in place to safeguard children – in a few days I am travelling to Silicon Valley to meet many of them, and what I will be telling them, is that the Online Safety Act is less about companies doing what the Government is asking them to do – it is about the companies doing what their users are asking them to do.

    Most companies actually do have robust and detailed terms of service. In fact, all of the 10 largest social media platforms in the world ban sexism, they ban racism, homophobia, and just about every other form of illegal abuse imaginable.

    Yet these terms are worthless unless they are enforced – and too often, they are not consistently enforced.

    So, the legislation that we have produced in the UK will mean that social media platforms will be required to uphold their own terms and conditions.

    For the first time ever, users in Britain can sign up to platforms knowing that the terms they agree with will actually be upheld, and that the platforms will face eye-watering fines if they fail to do so.

    But do not make the mistake of thinking that this Act is anti-business. Far from it, we view the Online Safety Act as a chance to harness the good that social media can do whilst tackling the bad, and because we believe in proportionality and innovation, we have not been prescriptive in how social media giants and messaging platforms should go about complying.

    I believe it’s never the role of the Government to dictate to business which technologies they use. Our approach has remained ‘tech neutral’ and business friendly.

    To borrow an American phrase, we are simply ensuring that they step up to the plate and to use their own vast resources and expertise to provide the best possible protections for children.

    And I know this matters on the other side of the Atlantic too, because the online world does not respect borders, and those who wish to do our children harm should not be undeterred by this sense that they can get away with it in some countries and not in others, or that they should be able to use this to their advantage.

    And that is why in the UK, we are taking steps to enable our online safety regulator, Ofcom, to share information with regulators overseas including here.

    These powers will complement existing initiatives, such as the Global Online Safety Regulators Network. A vital programme – which of course was launched at the FOSI conference last year – bringing together like-minded regulators to promote and protect human rights.

    And this momentum has been backed up by government action too. I am talking about the US Administration establishing an inter-agency Kids Online Health and Safety Task Force, and both of these are very welcome signs of the increasing unity between the UK and the US on this important agenda.

    Many of the aims perfectly complement what we are trying to do in the UK and I am keen that both our governments continue to work together.

    And while protecting children has remained our priority throughout the legislative process, we have been incredibly innovative with the way that we help protect adults online too. I believe when it comes to adults, we must take a different approach to the one that we take for children.

    Liberty and free expression are the cornerstones of the UK’s uncodified constitution, and of course at the heart of the US Constitution and Bill of Rights. So when thinking about protecting adults online, we knew we could not compromise these fundamental principles.

    In fact, I believe that the Act would have to actively promote and protect freedom and liberty for adults if it were to be successful in the long term, and that’s exactly what we did.

    So rather than tell adults what legal content they can and cannot see, we instead decided to empower adults with freedom and choice – on many platforms for the very first time. Known as user empowerment tools, the Bill requires companies to finally give adults a direct choice over the types of content they see and engage with.

    Taking the power out of the hands of unaccountable algorithms and placing it back in the hands of each and every individual user. Where an adult does not want to see certain types of legal content, they will have the power to toggle that content on and off as they choose, and in some cases, filter out keywords.

    Choice, freedom, and control for adults, while robustly protecting children at the same time. Combined together, these form the framework that we believe will become the global norm for online safety in the decades ahead.

    Now, just finally, while the glow of our successful Global AI Safety Summit is still bright, I want to touch briefly on the challenges of AI when it comes to online safety.

    We are discussing ‘New Frontiers in Online Safety’ today – and it is impossible to do that without talking about the technology that will define this century.

    Although AI brings enormous opportunities – from combating climate change to discovering life-saving drugs, to obviously helping our public services, it does also bring grave risk too – including on online safety, and we saw that just the other month in southern Spain, where fake, nude images of real girls had been created using AI – a case that shocked us all.

    And recently in Britain, fake AI-generated audio also targeted the leader of the opposition and spread rapidly on social media before being promptly debunked. So, we must be clear about the serious threat AI presents to our societies, from our children’s safety to our democratic processes and the integrity of our elections, something that we both care acutely about as we march towards our elections.

    And that is why we hosted the first ever AI Safety Summit earlier this month at Bletchley Park, where 28 countries and the European Union were represented, representing the vast majority of the world’s population. And we signed an unprecedented agreement known as the Bletchley Declaration.

    Despite some claiming that such a declaration would be rejected by many countries in attendance, we actually agreed that for the good of all, AI should be designed, developed, deployed, and used, in a manner that is safe, in such a way as to be human-centric, trustworthy and of course responsible.

    But I have been clear that when it comes to online safety, especially for our children, we cannot afford to take our eye off the ball in the decade to come.

    And the historic Bletchley Declaration lays out a pathway for countries to follow together that will ultimately lead to a safer online world, but it is up to us all to ensure that we continue down that pathway.

    And In support of that mission, I have directed the UK’s Frontier AI Taskforce to rapidly evolve into a new AI Safety Institute, giving our best and brightest minds a key role to really delve into the risks that AI presents as well as the pre-deployment testing. And of course, it will partner with the US’s own Safety Institute which the Vice President announced in London during the summit.

    We must also recognise AI can of course be part of the solution to many of the problems we are discussing today, as well – from detecting and moderating harmful content to proactively mitigating potential risks like the generation and dissemination of deep fakes.

    FOSI’s new report, published today – does provide important insights on the early use of generative AI tools by parents and teens, and how it will impact children’s safety and privacy online.I will be taking these findings back to my officials in London and ensuring that we deepen the already close relationship between our two countries when it comes to protecting our children.

    Now, while I hope my speech today has been somewhat of a soft-sell if you like for the online safety framework that we have created in the UK, I actually don’t think our approach really requires salesmanship to the rest of the world. Because even before our Online Safety Act became law, companies began implementing key parts of its provisions and adapting their behaviour.

    Many social media platforms now allow keyword filtering, some have started exploring and piloting age assurance methods, and many are proactively cleaning up illegal content through new innovative techniques.

    So, if there is one thing I want to say to American policymakers who want to make a real difference for children and adults online, it’s be ambitious, put children first, front and centre, and above all, defend the values that you would expect to see on the streets as ferociously online as you would in person.

    As the online world and the offline world merge ever closer together, now is the time to stand firm and uphold the values that we share, and the values that got us here in the first place.

    Thank you.