Data Policy Digest

Jan 10, 2025

Jan 10, 2025

Hello, and welcome to our 28th Data Policy Digest, bringing you all the latest data and AI policy developments.

And Happy New Year! I hope you had a wonderful Christmas, and a relaxing break from all things data and AI (with the exception of Wallace and Gromit’s terrific take on technology).

Some big Data Policy Digest news to kick off your 2025: this will be the last edition in this form with Connected by Data. The Digest, along with our other Data and AI Civil Society Network activity, was funded out of a grant from JRRT, and we were sadly unsuccessful in the latest round of applications. A massive thank you to JRRT for their funding to date; to the whole team at Connected by Data for being brilliant; and of course, to all of you for subscribing and reading.

We’re currently pondering what’s next for the Digest - perhaps a paid-for Substack, perhaps a new home, or perhaps some new funding will come through, but we do need some money from somewhere to continue. If you’d like to help shape the future of the Digest, our feedback survey is still open - thanks to those who’ve responded so far - or you can email me directly.

This started as a pop-up newsletter way back in April 2023 to cover the previous government’s Data Protection and Digital Information Bill. It would be fair to say a lot has happened since - so much so, it’s felt more permanent than pop-up and keeping it to a ‘Digest’ has felt like an aspiration rather than the reality. Thanks for sticking with it, and for all the suggestions, links and kind words. Hopefully this is the end of the beginning, rather than the end.

If there’s something we’ve missed, something you’re up to that you’d like us to include next time or you have any thoughts on how useful the Digest is or could be, please get in touch via gavin@gavinfreeguard.com. A reminder that Connected by Data is on Bluesky @connectedbydata.bsky.social. You can also catch up on previous Digests.

To keep in touch with the next steps for the Data Policy Digest, sign up here.

Data policy developments

Bills, bills, bills
DSIT up and take notice
Parly-vous data?
AI got ‘rithm
In brief

What we’ve been up to

What everyone else has been up to

Events

Good reads

Data policy developments

Bills, bills, bills

Data (Use and Access) Bill (DUAB): The Bill completed its Lords Committee stage during December. This is where the Lords went through the Bill clause by clause - because it was a grand committee, amendments were not voted on and only made if they were agreed unanimously, so expect to see a lot of similar ones return in future stages. The next stage is Report stage, on 21 January and 28 January, which continues the detailed examination of the Bill and will include voting on amendments.

You can catch up on the four days of debate at Committee stage:

3 December, where subjects discussed included smart data, digital verification services (digital identity), data on sex and gender, cybersecurity, the National Underground Asset Register (NUAR), and data on births and deaths
10 December, including scientific research, consent and notification, recognised legitimate interests, children’s data, a bit on copyright and processing of personal data by private companies and rights (Defend Digital Me have a write-up, noting it was International Human Rights Day)
16 December, including a continuation of the discussion on rights, AI (including AI model development and children’s rights), advertising and marketing data, enforcement of data rights, automated decision making and processing by law enforcement and security services
18 December, including children’s data, the Computer Misuse Act and cybersecurity, independent researcher access to data around online safety, national security and data privacy risks, AI and child sexual abuse material and deepfakes, copyright, reliability of computer-based evidence, data assets held in the public interest, data centre energy usage, environmental data, and some government amendments on the ICO and immigration data.

Remember - if you’re a civil society org interested in the Bill, there’s a dedicated working group you can join as part of the Data and AI Civil Society Network.

Other bits and pieces around the Bill…

There’s been lots on digital identity over the last few weeks… drink it in, as DSIT press released the possible use for age verification in pubs (though in the US, age verification and porn is the story)… the Office for Digital Identities and Attributes published interim findings on the digital identity sector… Biometric Update detected growing support in the UK press, including from the Times (which muddles government ID with the different framework proposed by the Bill), FT (see also this social media discussion) and in the Mail (where a certain former prime minister continues to think digital ID is the solution to everything), although GB News is less positive… Labour Together also wrote about shifting attitudes… and Sex Matters wrote (and briefed peers) about digital identity too…

There was some coverage around CSAM and deepfake image abuse, which will be introduced via a different Act (see written ministerial statement and also Baroness Owen’s private member’s bill, below)…

Lord Holmes wrote for Computer Weekly about automated decision making (and a few other things), while techUK had a briefing dedicated to the subject, Big Brother Watch wrote about the Bill opening the floodgates to AI, and there have been developments on algorithmic transparency (see DSIT up and take notice, below)…

Ofcom’s call for evidence on researcher access to data remains open until 17 January… the Police Federation supported an amendment around the ‘bureaucratic burden’ on officers… DSIT tweeted something seasonal about NUAR…

Connected by Data was one of the signatories to a letter on automated decision making, organised by ORG… there are general briefings/campaigns/summaries from the Law Society (twice, thrice), the Local Government Association, the law firm Squire Paton Boggs, Keep Our NHS Public (and another)… IAPP had a piece on ICO, UK government detail potential impacts of proposed data reforms…

And… as for things not in the Bill, but that were in the previous government’s Data Protection and Digital Information Bill… the latest annual report from the Biometrics and Surveillance Camera Commissioner (which DPDIB would have abolished) says government needs to pay more attention and think about its place in the regulatory landscape… and Lord Sikka reminds us that the controversial DWP powers dropped from this Bill will appear elsewhere.

AI Bill: We still await details of a narrow frontier-focused Bill, expected to put the AI Safety Institute on a statutory footing and make voluntary agreements between government and industry mandatory, accompanied by a consultation (which we understand may go wider).

Cybersecurity and Resilience Bill: Coming in 2025. Meanwhile… the National Cyber Security Centre published its annual review… their new head made their first speech… Infosecurity Magazine says 2025 is A Critical Year for Cybersecurity Compliance in the EU and UK… Evaluation of the Northern Ireland Cyber AI Hub programme (DSIT)… and Cyber attack costing six-figure sum, council says (BBC).

Property (Digital Assets etc) Bill: This is in a Special Public Bill Committee which is taking evidence (next hearing: 9 January). The Lords Library and Law Society have briefings.

Other King’s Speech Bills: The Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill had its second reading in the Commons on Wednesday, the first opportunity for MPs to debate its contents. Data-related measures include information sharing through a children’s number and a register of children not in school. Defend Digital Me has more on the Bill, and more general reflections on 2024 and pupil data. Education secretary Bridget Phillipson said an amendment from the Tories, on an inquiry into grooming gangs (see Musk Odour, below), would kill the bill and is ‘utterly sickening’ - given Labour’s majority, the amendment was not expected to pass, and it didn’t.

Meanwhile, the Product Regulation and Metrology Bill awaits a date for Lords report stage, and the Employment Rights Bill has some Commons committee sessions to come.

Online Safety Act: As ever, check out the Online Safety Act Network and their newsletter for more, but some things which caught my attention…

Peter Kyle made a written ministerial statement on the Act’s implementation on 16 December, and the following day DSIT published illegal content codes of practice 2024 and explanatory memorandum… while Ofcom published its first major policy Statement for the Online Safety regime, appointed a new head of online safety, still has an open consultation on researcher access to data from social media platforms, and apologised for an ‘ill-judged’ porn joke job ad…

London Fixed Gear and Single-Speed (a community of cyclists in and around London) attracted some attention for announcing it will shut down due to the OSA… and with perfect timing, Promising Trouble have posted Five things you need if you run a small, low-risk user-to-user service…

Lots more on children and phones… Australian-style social media ban for under-16s is highly unlikely, says Tech Secretary (The Sun)… Jonathan Haidt lobbied politicians by accusing teen social media ban critics of ‘burying’ evidence (Crikey, in Australia)… John Swinney considering social media ban for under-16s (Holyrood, in Scotland)… ‘Phone ban sees pupils talk to each other more’ (BBC)… Policy Exchange has an event on the subject on 14 January…

And… event footage of Is the internet good for children? (LSE)… Internet bans could prevent children being radicalised online (The Times)… EXCLUSIVE: Instagram faces Ofcom investigation for ‘turning a blind eye to ads for child sex abuse’ (Daily Mail)… and Police refer Westminster ‘honeytrap’ to prosecutors (BBC).

Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act: The CMA sets out initial plans as new digital markets competition regime comes into force - How the UK’s digital markets competition regime works… TechRepublic has a briefing on the Act… and the chief exec of the CMA and senior director of the Digital Markets Unit gave evidence on 7 January to the Lords’ Communications and Digital Committee.

Private Member’s Bills: PMBs are unlikely to pass without government support, but there are some relevant ones around at the moment…

Josh McAlister’s Protection of Children (Digital Safety and Data Protection) Bill has its Second Reading in March - he spoke to The House magazine about it, while the Molly Rose Foundation critiqued its proposal for a digital age of consent…

Lord Clement-Jones’ Public Authority Algorithmic and Automated Decision-Making Systems Bill had its second reading (highlights include Baroness Lane-Fox, chair of DSIT’s advisory panel on the digital centre, describing ‘the engine of the Government’s AI plans’ as ‘truly a horror show’, and see also the Lords Library briefing)…

But arguably Baroness Owen’s Non-Consensual Sexually Explicit Images and Videos (Offences) Bill, which also had its second reading (see Lords Library briefing), has received the most attention - she wrote for The Times and spoke to The House. Minister Jess Phillips told the Mirror she had spoken to Owen, and the government has now announced its own measures (the previous Sunak government had promised something, too).

DSIT up and take notice

Let’s try to keep this snappy, he says, weeping at just how many data and AI-relevant announcements there have been since our last edition. Strap in, everyone.

The traditional centre: Technology is key to reforming the state, which should be more like a start-up. That was one of the main messages in a major public sector reform speech from Chancellor for the Duchy of Lancaster, Pat McFadden. (For clarity, he meant it being agile, iterative and adaptive, rather than it making inflated claims before being bought by big tech.) The Guardian’s Andrew Sparrow transcribed the Q&A and some other reaction. The speech came after the government’s missions/Plan for Change relaunch (see also: written ministerial statement), and tried to water down PM Keir Starmer’s ‘tepid bath of managed decline’ comments about civil servants.

McFadden was also in front of the Commons PACAC committee the next day, while Starmer himself touched on the importance of AI and digital skills during his appearance at the Liaison Committee (made up of all Commons select committee chairs) the following week. AI and copyright also came up (more on that below). The PM also met Apple and mentioned AI at the Lord Mayor’s Banquet, in talks with the president of the UAE, and with President Macron (the AI Action Summit happens in Paris in February, and Starmer also caught up with Mistral). Foreign Sec David Lammy also wants to bring AI to the heart of his department’s work. Starmer also asked regulators for ideas on boosting growth.

The new head of the civil service, Chris Wormald, talked about using tech to do things differently in his first message to civil servants - while his predecessor Simon Case touched on tech in a farewell lecture.

The Chancellor launched the next phase of the Spending Review, expected around June (more in our last edition) - expect some discussion of tech solutions to waste and efficiency as departmental budgets face cuts, which could be deeper than expected according to The Guardian. On which, Rachel Reeves was also apparently annoyed by having to change her address on her driving licence in person - which caused some scepticism on social media. The government has also appointed its Industrial Strategy Advisory Council.

And on a final fiscal note, the Scottish Budget had a ‘mixed picture’ on digital, while the Welsh one included some digital health tech and digital planning processes.

The digital centre: Personnel changes at the top, with former DG of CDDO, Joanna Davinson, returning to government as interim chief digital officer and leader of the digital centre… her predecessor, Mike Potter, shared some insights on public sector innovation… and Laura Gilbert, former head of 10DS and i.AI and joint chief analyst at the Cabinet Office departing government for the Ellison Institute of Technology at Oxford.

Peter Kyle spent some of the Christmas period visiting Silicon Valley (he also met some tech execs with chancellor Rachel Reeves). I don’t think he’s said anything about Elon Musk (see Musk odour, below).

DSIT perm sec Sarah Munby and national statistician Ian Diamond are among the perm secs reviewing the year and looking ahead for Civil Service World (GCS Assist, an AI assistant, makes it into the government comms chief’s summary).

In policy news… Matt Clifford’s long-awaited AI Opportunities Action Plan is expected on Monday, with 50 recommendations no less. It’s been a long wait - Clifford’s declared interests suggesting he completed his work back in September - with Politico suggesting it’s been held up by PM Starmer wanting to launch it (and therefore a slot in the media grid needing to be found).

The government launched its expected consultation on copyright and AI (a week after ministers were quizzed by a Lords committee) - it closes 25 February. Politico Influence took a look at the lobbying battle - if you want a flavour of the opposition from the creative industries, then… Government plans to allow big tech firms to ignore traditional copyright rules when training their AI systems (Mail)… UK arts and media reject plan to let AI firms use copyrighted material (The Guardian)… Tech Bros vs Copyright Laws (The Rest is Entertainment)… Paul McCartney warns AI ‘could take over’ as UK debates copyright laws (Guardian, pre-consultation announcement)… and AI’s assault on our intellectual property must be stopped (Kate Mosse in the FT).

If you’re in a consultation kind of mood - the government’s Technology Adoption Review is open until 14 February (what better use of Valentine’s Day etc).

And DSIT is consulting on ‘plans for a new collection of public engagement data’ (closes 31 January).

Some further contributions to National Data Library thinking, including contributions to a Wellcome/EHRC challenge… National Data Library: Technical Architecture White Paper (HDR UK)… DARE UK showcases vision for a National Data Library in technical white paper challenge (DARE UK)… Access to Data for Research: Lessons for the National Data Library (Minderoo)… The National Data Library should help people deliver trustworthy data services (Peter Wells, with handy links to much of what’s been written on the NDL)… and Owen Boswarva spots a six-month discovery phase in a job ad.

Fans of algorithmic transparency (I mean, come on, you’re reading this and you’ve got this far, don’t pretend otherwise) had an early Christmas present as 14 new records were published. ‘New records detail how AI helps government make quick, accurate decisions to boost trade, speed up responses and more’ was the DSIT press release. Ada’s Imogen Parker (step in the right direction, well done to civil servants, but still a mismatch between what we have and what we need) has a comprehensive overview. And on the subject of AI, etc… Government creates gen AI ‘Succession Select’ tool to find civil servants for top digital jobs (Public Technology)… Making it quicker and easier to search on GOV.UK (Inside GOV.UK)… Politico has a deep dive on the AI Safety Institute…

And in other news… the Responsible Technology Adoption Unit published the latest Public Attitudes to Data and AI Tracker Survey (the fourth wave) - Civil Service World have some headlines… i.AI have open-sourced a list of ‘Awesome UK Government Datasets’… Minister: One Login is on Budget and on Schedule (Public Technology)… GOV.UK One Login: Advancing digital sustainability in government (GDS Blog)… GOV.UK Forms Through the Ages (GDS Blog)… Blair-Era Cabinet Minister Hilary Armstrong to Lead New Digital Inclusion Action Committee (Public Technology)… Government Seeks Members for Refreshed Digital Skills Council (Government Transformation)…

Plus… UK Science and Innovation Network summaries for Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia… A list of Cyber Local projects which received funding in 2025… Hundreds of thousands of Brits in rural villages and towns to benefit from UK government broadband boost… DSIT major projects: appointment letters for Senior Responsible Owners (SROs)… The second UK-EU Cyber Dialogue takes place in London… there are some new resources in DSIT’s ‘Secure by Design’ collection… and for the most dedicated of you, DSIT has published its latest accounting officer system statement - which sounds dry but is a useful overview of the department and its various bodies, responsibilities and activities.

Other departments: Health… Power to patients as government sets out plan to cut waiting lists (DHSC)… NHS App upgrade to give patients more choice over treatment (BBC)… NHS could ‘die like Woolworths’ if it does not modernise, Health Secretary Wes Streeting warns (The Sun)… UK studies pricing plan for selling NHS patient data (FT)… Labour’s plans to sell GP data to private sector ‘make no sense’ (Morning Star)… Business Models for Data (2025) – What hasn’t worked, what has, and what to do next (medConfidential)…

More health… National Data Guardian 2023-2024 report (National Data Guardian)… Members of data and tech group for 10 year health plan revealed (Digital Health)… Clinician as editor: notes in the era of AI scribes (The Lancet)… AI scribes for GPs (Pritesh Mistry)… How does the public feel about health technologies and data? (Health Foundation)… ‘Don’t buy Epic’ unless it integrates with NHS App, says government adviser (HSJ)… ‘A hospital worker WhatsApped my mental breakdown’ (BBC)… MHRA trials five innovative AI technologies as part of pilot scheme to change regulatory approach (MHRA)… medConfidential note some of the very basics still aren’t in place…

DWP… Jeni spotted that extending FOI to private providers of public services (and publicly funded employers) is a long-term reform in the government’s Making Work Pay plans… Revealed: Bias Found in AI System Used to Detect UK Benefits (The Guardian)… DWP and £11m Supplier Prep Five Gen AI Projects With Director-General Sponsorship (Public Technology)… DWP offers £200k salary for next chief digital information officer (Civil Service World)…

DfT… Fuel Finder: All You Need to Know (AutoExpress)… Public Chargepoints for Electric Vehicles (NAO)… and so much for open transport data (Train Times)…

Defence… UK to unveil plans for new defence industrial council (FT)… TechUK Strategic Defence Review Submission Published (techUK)… ’Greater Mass, Persistence, and Reach’: MoD Explores Military AI (PublicTechnology)…

Home and justice… Sir Brian Leveson is to lead an Independent Review of the Criminal Courts, which includes looking at the use of new tech (MoJ)… Revealed: Ministers to Postpone Full Shift to eVisas Next Month (The Guardian)… Welsh police equipped with frontline facial-recognition app (Public Technology)… Police unlawfully storing images of innocent people for facial recognition (The Guardian)…

Devolution… the big English Devolution White Paper: Power and Partnership Foundations for Growth (MHCLG) includes Plans to Set Up Mayoral Data Council (UKAuthority)… Scotland Bans WhatsApp on Government Phones (Politico)… Welsh Councils Sign Nationwide £200m Tech Framework (PublicTechnology)… Written Statement: Guidance publication – Managing Technology that Manages People – a Social Partnership Approach (Welsh Government)… AI and the Welsh economy (TUC Cymru’s AI Reference Group)…

ICO: ICO 2024 – a year in review… Our lives, our privacy: the 40 items that shaped 40 years of privacy rights… Information Commissioner’s Office response to the consultation series on generative AI… ICO to continue ‘minimal-fine regime’ for public-sector bodies (CSW)… UK data regulator criticises Google for ‘irresponsible’ ad tracking change (Guardian)… A Clear Oversight? Inquiring into the Information Commissioner’s 2024 Statutory Review of Journalism (David Erdos, UK Constitutional Law Association)… and, er, data protection? Yawn…

Everyone else… Ofsted Research on Artificial Intelligence in Education: Terms of Reference (Ofsted)… Inaugural DBT Analysis Prize Winner Announced (Civil Service World)… Regulating AI: How the UK’s Watchdogs Are Working to Keep Up With Technology (Global Government Forum)… Legacy Tech: Defra Preps for Exit From Three Datacentres After Shutting Down 50 Ageing Apps (PublicTechnology)

Staff at Britain’s AI institute in open revolt (Politico)… Alan Turing Institute chair backs CEO after no-confidence letter (Research Professional News)…

Stats: The big game in town - and online (you have until 20 January to sign up) - is the UK Statistics Assembly on 22 January, recommended by the Lievesley Review of the UK Statistics Authority last March.

Additionally… there’s an open consultation on the Code of Practice for Statistics (closes 14 February, how much do you love stats etc), which Office for Stats Regulation DG Ed Humpherson has written about… Thinking local at the Subnational Data Conference (ONS)… Developing harmonised standards for sex and gender identity (ONS)…

ONS inability to fix labour force survey until 2027 ‘a major blow’, MPs hear (Guardian)… The British state is blind (The Economist)… Lies, damned lies and statistics: Why we can’t trust numbers anymore (City AM)…

And… there’s a preview of the new ONS website… and the latest shortlist for the annual analysis in government awards.

Tory story: Former Tory minister Damian Collins has joined the Centre for Media, Technology and Democracy in Montreal as a senior fellow… while shadow DSIT secretary Alan Mak summarised his first month in the job on X.

Everything else: UK Authority picks out Five issues for public sector digital in 2025 (UKAuthority), while Public Technology also looks ahead to 2025 and back at their most read stories in 2024… Smart state: Can AI deliver a better future? (Civil Service World)… Four things we learned at the PublicTechnology Cyber Security Conference (Public Technology)… the second edition of the Heywood Quarterly includes accountability sinks and wedding planning from the Head of Futures and Foresight at the Joint Data and Analysis Centre…

Local Government in the Digital Space: Reflections From the LGA Conference (LGIU)… Commissioner calls for reform of FOI rights (Scottish FOI Commissioner)… Revealed: Tory government spent almost £1 million on lawyers to fight transparency (Democracy for Sale)… Buying AI: how public sector procurement can ensure AI works for people and society (Global Government Forum)… Fall in UK university core science courses stokes fears for industrial strategy (Financial Times)… Canadian public servants invited to submit ideas for data and AI innovation (Global Government Forum)… the new Blavatnik Index of Public Administration includes data on digital/data across international civil services… Reform have a new report, Byte-sized budgeting: funding digital service in government…

And ARIA is looking for non-exec directors, while its CEO gave the Campaign for Science and Engineering’s annual lecture.

Parly-vous data?

Parliament is back from Christmas recess (the houses rose, or broke up, on 19 December and came back on Monday 6 January).

Let’s catch up on what’s happened in the Commons… 2 December: written ministerial statement from Chris Bryant (DCMS/DSIT) on Online Advertising: Taskforce Progress Report 2023-24… 3 December: tech sec Peter Kyle and perm sec Sarah Munby covered a range of subjects under questioning from the Science, Innovation and Technology committee… 4 December: civil service COO Cat Little touched on tech with PACAC (the Civil Service Board is working on ‘the digital and technology strategy’ among other things)… 4 December: Ten Minute Rule Bill on Public Body Ethnicity Data (Inclusion of Jewish and Sikh Categories) from Preet Kaur Gill (Lab)… 5 December: Cabinet Office questions… 10 December: senior Cabinet Office minister Pat McFadden joined Cat Little for another PACAC session, where McFadden touched on tech following his big public sector reform speech… 10 December: culture sec Lisa Nandy and her perm sec Susannah Storey were in front of the DCMS committee, with AI and the creative industries one of the topics raised… 18 December: ministerial statement (Chris Bryant) on AI and copyright consultation… 18 December: adjournment debate on Internet Service Providers and Suicide-related Content (Richard Burgon, Ind)… 18 December: Westminster Hall debate on Immigration and Nationality Statistics (Nick Timothy, Con)… 7 January: data made an appearance in a Westminster Hall debate on Workplace Pay Gaps (Dawn Butler, Lab)… 8 January: DSIT questions… and Jon Pearce has replaced his Labour colleague Josh Simons (now a PPS at Defra - as is fellow digitally literate Claire Hazelgrove) on the Science, Innovation and Technology Committee… 10 January: the Defence sub committee published a report on Developing AI capacity and expertise in UK Defence…

Coming up in the Commons… 13 January: Select Committee Statement on the Second Report of the Defence Committee, Developing AI capacity and expertise in UK Defence… 13 January: Westminster Hall debate on a petition related to children’s social media accounts (the BBC has more)… 14 January: Science, Innovation and Technology Committee hosts an evidence session on Innovation, growth and the regions… 16 January: DCMS questions… 17 January: second readings of private members’ bills, including the Social Media (Access to Accounts) Bill (Max Wilkinson, Lib Dem)… 23 January: Cabinet Office questions… 23 January: Public Accounts Committee evidence session on Whole of Government Accounts… 30 January: DSIT and Cabinet Office perm secs, and the government chief technology officer, are giving evidence at the first hearing of PAC’s ‘use of AI in government’ inquiry… 12 February: DSIT questions…

Previous Lords Business… 3 December: first day of committee stage for the Data (Use and Access) Bill - much more on that at the top of the newsletter… 3 December: Communications and Digital Committee oral evidence session with research councils and others on ‘Scaling up - AI and creative tech’… 4 December: AI made an appearance in a Public Services Committee hearing on interpreting and translation services in the courts… 6 December: AI and tech featured a little in the Lord Archbishop of York’s debate on the ‘Importance of social cohesion and strong, supportive community life during periods of change and global uncertainty’… 10 December: ministers Feryal Clark, Chris Bryant and Baroness Gustafsson appeared before the ‘Scaling up - AI and creative tech’ inquiry… 11 December: the International Agreements Committee published a report on Data and digital trade… 12 December: Lord Arbuthnot had a question on subpostmaster convictions and the Post Office’s Capture computer system (there has since been a written ministerial statement on that in the Commons)… 13 December: second reading of a couple of private members’ bills, the Non-Consensual Sexually Explicit Images and Videos (Offences) Bill (Baroness Owen, Con), and the Public Authority Algorithmic and Automated Decision-Making Systems Bill (Lord Clement-Jones, Lib Dem) - more on those at the top of the newsletter… 18 December: MoJ ministers and officials gave evidence to the inquiry on interpreting/translation services in the courts… 7 January: Communications and Digital Committee oral evidence session with the chief exec of the CMA and senior director of its Digital Markets Unit… 7 January: the Science and Tech Committee had a one-off session on science visa policy…

Coming up in Lords… 16 January: question from Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Lab) on ‘Risks posed by small online platforms‘… 21 January: Data (Use and Access) Bill starts report stage (see top of the newsletter, also 28 January)… 27 January: question from Viscount Stansgate (Lab) on ‘Energy usage involved in mining Bitcoin and in general internet activity’…

Both Houses rise on 13 February and return on 24 February.

In select committee news, Politico’s Morning Tech UK notes that the three-year terms of several peers are coming to an end: chair Baroness Stowell (Con), Baroness Harding (Con), Lord Hall (crossbench) and Lord Young (Lab) on the Communications and Digital Committee, and chair Baroness Brown (crossbench) and Lord Rees (crossbench) on the Science and Technology Committee.

In APPG news (2025 list now available)… the APPG on AI joined forces with the AI Faith & Civil Society Commission for an event on ‘how can we ensure AI enhances, rather than diminishes our spiritual and cultural lives?’… Dan Aldridge was elected chair of a new Cyber Innovation APPG…

And… Baroness Lane-Fox blogged about her contribution to a Lords debate on the politicisation of the civil service… Lord Holmes spoke to TechHQ… POST published a briefing on Energy security and AI… the University of Edinburgh wrote to the Communications and Digital Committee about their axed supercomputer (the Herald has a recent story on that too)… and if you’re wondering what a Westminster Hall debate is and how effective they’ve been, the Political Studies Association has you covered.